Here's how you know
 **Official websites use .mil** .mil
 **Secure .mil websites use HTTPS** lock () https://


Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 Toggle navigation
            
            
            
            
            National Guard
                        Always Ready Always There
                    National Guard
            
            Search National Guard:
                        Search
                    Search
                        Search National Guard:
                            Search
    Home

    News
    
        Guard News

    Overseas Operations

    State Partnership Program

    News Features

    RSS Feeds

    Press Releases

    Transcripts

    Features
    
        Features by Year

    Posture Statement

    State Partnership Program

    Special Features

    About the Guard
    
        How We Began

    Air National Guard

    Army National Guard    
    
        DEERS Soldier Journey

    Leader Development Program

    History and Heritage

    I am the Guard

    NGB Official March

    Leadership
    
        CNGB

    VCNGB

    SEA

    DANG

    DARNG

    Joint Staff    
    
        J-1

    J-2

    J-3

    J-4

    J-5

    J-6

    J-7

    J-8

    Personal Staff    
    
        Inspector General

    General Counsel

    Public Affairs

    Executive Support Services

    Legislative Liaison

    Special Staff    
    
        National Guard Office of Special Victims' Counsel

    Office of the Provost Marshal

    Office of the Joint Surgeon

    Director of Acquisitions

    Small Business Programs

    Chaplain

    Senior Leader Management Office

    Diversity Equity Inclusion

    Comptroller

    Resources    
        National Defense Strategy Implementation Guidance

    Community Engagement

    FOIA

    Fact Sheets

    Helpful Links

    Image Gallery
    
        News Images

    Graphics

    Historical Paintings

    Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

    Legislative Liaison

    Small Business Programs

    Social Media

    State Websites

    Videos    
    
        Featured Videos

    On Every Front

    2019 Videos

    2020 Videos

    2021 Videos

    Suicide Prevention

    Family Programs

    Environmental

    Trial Defense Service

    Holistic Wellness Challenge

    Contact Us  Home
  News
  Article View
 
 Download
 Details
 Share
 NEWS
 Wingman Project implemented for Deep Freeze mission By Tech. Sgt. Aries Early
                13th Air Force Public Affairs
 JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR HICKAM, Hawaii - A new initiative
designed to keep Airmen and their families alive and well is currently being
implemented as part of Operation Deep Freeze here. The Wingman Project began as an Air National Guard program but is now being
expanded to serve other parts of the Total and Joint Force. Its goal is to
eliminate suicides among Airmen and family members through human outreach,
media and training. Implementing the program as part of Operation Deep Freeze, the Department of
Defense's logistical support to the National Science Foundation and the U.S.
Antarctic program in Antarctica, was the idea of Lt. Col. Ed Vaughan. Before moving to 13th Air Force here to serve as the chief of joint
operations and plans for Joint Task Force Support Forces Antarctica, Colonel
Vaughan was the deputy director of safety for the Air National Guard. In
that role, he helped create, and served as first national director of the
Wingman Project. "Whether your area of responsibility is in the desert or the polar ice,
warfighters and their loved ones must always try to be good wingmen to one
another," Vaughan said. "This program is designed to help them do that by
turbo-charging existing suicide prevention programs to provide
servicemembers and their families with easy-to-learn techniques that save
lives." Suicide rates in the Air Force, and across the military, are at an all time
high, and according to the Air Force Medical Operations Agency, suicides
outnumber combat losses by seven-to-one in the service. These numbers
indicate that servicemembers can be more harmful to themselves than any
enemy roadside bomb or gunfire. It was figures like these that propelled Air Force officials to continue
their search for better ways to prevent suicides, Vaughan said. The search
led Air Force and Air National Guard officials to implement the Wingman
Project in 2007. The project trains Airmen and their families on how to identify a person in
crisis, and how to intervene to save a life. The training method is called
ACE-which stands for Ask, Care and Escort-and was validated by
psychologists. Secretary of the Air Force, the Honorable Michael B. Donley, and Chief of
Staff of the Air Force, Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, also encouraged all Airmen
to use ACE in a "Letter to Airmen" on April 24. The training consists of familiarization-level exposure through
computer-based training, followed by optional classroom training of three
hours for individuals who want to become a certified "ACE." Those wishing to
take their knowledge even farther and become instructors are offered the
14-hour Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training course, also known as
ASIST. For the implementation of the Wingman Project in the Antarctic Joint
Operating Area, Col. Paul Sheppard, the deputy commander for Joint Task
Force Support Forces Antarctica, directed commanders and first sergeants to
distribute suicide awareness posters and wallet cards to all members of the
task force. Sheppard also directed the establishment of an Operation Deep Freeze Wingman
Project website that provides servicemembers and families with a more in
depth look at the Wingman Project. Vaughan, said the outreach campaign is effective and members are taking the
information back to their families and home stations during redeployment. The Wingman Project was identified as an Air Force-wide "best practice"
during an Air Force Safety Center staff assistance visit in July 2009.
Headquarters Air Force also recommended the inclusion of the program into
future military deployments. To learn more about the Antarctica Wingman Project, Airmen and their family
members are encouraged to visit the national website at
www.ODF.WingmanProject.org.
 SHARE
 PRINT
 
 Pennsylvania Army Guardsmen Complete Combat Lifesaver Course
 By Sgt. 1st Class Shane Smith,
  38th Infantry Division Soldiers Conduct Warfighter Exercise
 By Master Sgt. Jeff Lowry,
  Puerto Rico Air National Guard Trains at Red Flag-Alaska
 By 156th Wing
  More
 Pennsylvania Army Guardsmen Complete Combat Lifesaver Course Guard News • 5 hours ago
 38th Infantry Division Soldiers Conduct Warfighter Exercise Guard News • 12 hours ago
 Puerto Rico Air National Guard Trains at Red Flag-Alaska Guard News • 13 hours ago
 Air National Guard Conducts Sentry Savannah Exercise Guard News • yesterday
 Hawaii Air National Guard Hosts Sentry Aloha Joint Exercise Guard News • yesterday
 2024 (196)  2023 (427)  2022 (526)  2021 (697)  2020 (936)  2019 (387)  2018 (323)  2017 (346)  2016 (245)  2015 (356)  2014 (399)  2013 (469)  2012 (556)  2011 (533)  2010 (1071)  2009 (357)  2008 (638)  2007 (295)  2006 (188)
 Home
 Site Map
 Privacy & Security Policy
 Link Disclaimer
 Web Policy
 DOD Information Quality
 DOD Open GovernmentFOIA
 No FEAR Act
 Accessibility/Section 508
 Contact Us
 Army Guard Careers
 Air Guard Careers
 USA.gov
                    
Staying Connected
    XYouTubeFlickrFacebookInstagram
                 
                
                

Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil