Col. Bruce Bowers (middle left), 446th Airlift Wing commander, gets help from 446th Aeromedical Staging Squadron Reservists, with cutting the ribbon to the new 446th ASTS facility at Hangar 12, McChord Field, Wash. Feb, 9, 2013. “Along with improving their own training, they'll be able to practice working with the 446th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron here, the Air National Guard, and their civilian counterparts,” Col. Rob Richardson (middle right) 446th ASTS commander said. (Courtesy photo/Douglas Olsen Photography) Reservists with the 446th Aeromedical Staging Squadron, out of McChord Field, Wash., await the arrival of the 446th Airlift Wing and 446th ASTS commanders Feb. 9 at Hangar 12. The 446th ASTS has just moved into a new facility on the flight line that allows them to better train in their mission. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Airman 1st Class Madelyn McCullough) Reservists from the 446th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron and the 446th Aeromedical Staging Squadron prepare to demonstrate a scenario of carrying a victim from a vehicle onto a C-17 Globemaster III, Feb. 9 at Hangar 12. The scenario is to show leadership the type of hands-on training they will be able to accomplish because of 446th ASTS' new location. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Airman 1st Class Madelyn McCullough) A team of Reservists from the 446th Aeromedical Staging Squadron and the 446th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, both out of McChord Field, Wash., carry a "victim" on a litter onto a C-17 Globemaster III, Feb. 9 at the new 446th ASTS building. The teams are demonstrating the type of training they will be able to accomplish with the new facility on the flight line. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Airman 1st Class Madelyn McCullough) McChord Reserve unit moves into new home by Airman 1st Class Madelyn McCullough 446th Airlift Wing Public Affairs 2/10/2013 - MCCHORD FIELD, Wash. -- With the slice of a red ribbon, Citizen Airmen with the 446th Aeromedical Staging Squadron here celebrated the inauguration of their new home in Hangar 12 Feb. 9. Originally, they shared Bldg. 691 with the 446th Aerospace Medicine Squadron. However, packing two squadrons with more than 300 Reservists into one building made completing mission training a daunting task for both medical units. "We were collocated with the Aerospace Medicine Squadron over in Bldg. 691," said Col. Rob Richardson, 446th ASTS commander. "From working in that crowded environment over several years, we noticed it was not conducive for either squadron's ability to do their mission." With so much overcrowding, the squadron's training materials were spread out in various locations on base. "We were geographically separated from our skills lab and we had equipment stored in several different locations," said Senior Master Sgt. Robert Cutchin, 446th ASTS senior Air Reserve Technician and Support Flight superintendent. To crack the dilemma, 446th ASTS leadership competed for the facility, which previously belonged to the decommissioned 446th Airlift Control Flight, and was granted it in 2007. Since then, Cutchin has worked hand-in-hand with contractors in order to transform leadership's vision of the building into a reality. "We wanted to have a training platform that's all in one," said Cutchin, of University Place. "It gives our (medical Airmen) an opportunity to actually perform their duties and stay proficient at what they do." After countless meetings crammed with thorough planning, Hangar 12 emerged a success, Cutchin said. Because of its location on the flight line, Reservists now have the ability to work with various airframes and practice better hands-on mission training. The building also includes a skills lab with scenarios of different medical situations, and has enough storage space to keep their equipment under one roof. "If someone says, 'I think we need to walk through a whole scenario of loading a patient on an aircraft,' we can do that," said Lt. Col. Eric Johnson, 446th ASTS Flight Operations commander. "We have a bay that opens up and we can have the flight-line people back up an aircraft. It will make us true to life in what we do here." "This gives us autonomy, but also gives us that direct feeling of being able to accomplish our mission because we are on the flight line," said Maj. Kelli Bowen, 446th ASTS Support Flight commander. "We'll be able to do our job at a higher level." Along with improving their own training, they'll be able to practice working with the 446th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron here, the Air National Guard, and their civilian counterparts, Richardson said. "Our mission is en-route care on the ground and in the air, and this facility lends itself to that training platform," he said.