403rd Wing Hosts German-U.S. Reserve Officer Exchange Program

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Kimberly Erickson
  • 403rd Wing Public Affairs
KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, MISS. --  Lt. Col. Uwe Hasselberg, a German Air Force Joint Support Service officer, visited Reservists at the 403rd Wing for two weeks in June as part of the German-U.S. Reserve Officer Exchange Program.

"This is the first year (the wing) has participated," Col. Kerry Kohler, 403rd Maintenance Group commander and mentor to Colonel Hasselberg, said of the annual Department of Defense program.

The purpose of the program is to better understand how the U.S. Reserve works while establishing partnership and camaraderie, Colonel Hasselberg said.

"The goal to improve the relationship between American and German forces," he said.

While visiting the 403rd Wing, Colonel Hasselberg toured life support and maintenance facilities at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., flew on a cross-country training mission with the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron "Hurricane Hunters" and had an opportunity to visit both the Mississippi Air and Army National Guard facilities in Gulfport, Miss.

"I visited all of the maintenance group's shops and they tried to familiarize me with the things they do here," Colonel Hasselberg said. "It wasn't easy (for them) because I'm not a technician."

The language barrier may have made understanding some things more difficult than others, but Colonel Hasselberg said it didn't affect the overall goal of his visit.

"The purpose of this exchange program isn't to learn the technical parts of an engine," he said. "It's to learn about the U.S. Reserve, its mission and people."

Civilian employment protection, offered to both U.S. and German Reservists, is one of the biggest similarities, Colonel Kohler said.

"They have a lot of the same protections as we do for their service in the civilian community, like our Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve program," Colonel Kohler said.

The ESGR assists in the resolution of any conflicts arising from an employee's military commitment while promoting cooperation and understanding between Reservists and their civilian employees.

Conversely, training is one of the biggest differences.

"Here, we have air reserve technicians who work full time, Monday through Friday," Colonel Kohler said. "In Germany, there is no such infrastructure."

The Reserve system in Germany typically requires two to four weeks of training, twice annually, working completely separate from their active duty counterparts.

"We don't normally have the once monthly (training), but I'm under the impression that U.S. Reservists are very well trained due to a more regularly timed schedule," he said.

"I am a logistics manager in my civilian job," Colonel Hasselberg said. "When I train for the Reserve, I leave for a long time."

When serving on Reserve duty, he said he doesn't see the same benefits as U.S. Reservists.

"We don't have a base exchange or commissary," he said. "German soldiers shop at Wal-Mart, even on active duty. There is no housing or community offered to soldiers and their families on base."

Colonel Hasselberg said he learned a lot from his trip.

"I really appreciated that everyone made time for me, showing me around and explaining things, sometimes twice," Colonel Hasselberg. "Their friendliness and hospitality make it hard to leave."

To be considered for participation in the ROEP, German officers self-nominate, then go through a lengthy screening process. Once selected, they sign an agreement detailing their responsibilities while visiting the U.S.

Master Sgt. Michael Duhe also contributed to this report.