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Cannon unveils new emergency response vehicle

  • Published
  • By Greg Allen
  • 27th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs
CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  It looks pretty much like any 26,000 pound, 39-foot RV going down the road, if you ignore the enormous gold signage that says "Emergency Management Cannon AFB."

The Mobile Emergency Operations Center vehicle, or MEOC, made its official appearance on March 27 as Cannon Airmen and employees got a view of the vehicle.

Glynn Lamb, 27th Special Operations Logistics Squadron vehicle control chief, looked at the vehicle as it sat on the corner of Torch and Octagon, waiting for the arrival of Airmen who will train to use it.

"It's part of the Air Force concept for mobile management operations centers," he said. "It's a regional vehicle, but it's stationed here at Cannon."

It can be used by several other bases in the Southwest such as Luke AFB, Ariz., and bases in Colorado, added Mr. Lamb.

"If they have a natural disaster or a crash, it [the vehicle] will respond," he said.

The vehicle was built by Farber Specialty Vehicles in Columbus, Ohio, said Farber representative Harry Spieker as he showed off the quarter-million dollar vehicle.

"We've built a lot of vehicles similar to this such as command or medical centers," he said. "This is very similar to units we built for Hurlburt Field and McGuire AFB in New Jersey."

The vehicle is a Freightliner chassis, which makes it like a more truck than anything else. It has an Allison transmission, air brakes and a 20 kilowatt generator that, according to Mr. Spieker, would probably power a small house. It can also hook up to an external power source and has a slide-out room for additional space.

But it is the inside of the vehicle that sets it apart from your everyday RV. It is equipped with 11 monitors with access to local and satellite broadcasts, along with Internet access and telephone systems. This provides the on-site commander with real-world communication capabilities. It also has sleeping and bathroom facilities in addition to a cooking area for extended missions.

Staff Sergeant Greg Hansen, 27th Special Operations Logistics Readiness Squadron, vehicle and vehicular equipment maintenance journeyman, walked around the vehicle looking like he wanted to buy it. He poked and prodded wires and plugs as he stuck his head under the hood. He pulled at the chrome lugnuts and ran his hand over the rack of batteries. He would scribble notes on a pad of paper.

"I'm looking to see what kind of systems it uses and what we will have to do for maintenance," said Sergeant Hansen. "I know it will be on our 'hot' list," referring to the amount of time it takes to perform maintenance.

Mr. Lamb said that once Cannon Airmen are trained on the operation and use of the MEOC, the base will work with other units to determine who will operate the vehicle when it is at other locations.

"One of the reasons we are here today is to figure out if our [Airmen] will deploy with the vehicle or if we need to train people from other bases. That's yet to be determined," said Mr. Lamb.

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