Can you hear me now?

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Benjamin Sutton
  • 366th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
MOUNTAIN HOME AIR FORCE BASE, Idaho --  Throughout the year, base agencies will continue the transition to Voice over Internet Protocol phones in order to comply with a mandate from Air Combat Command.

The VoIP technology allows individuals to make voice calls using a broadband Internet connection instead of an analog or copper-wire phone line.

"Eventually everybody on base will receive these new phones," said Staff Sgt. Sean Rabbie, assistant noncommissioned officer in charge of cyber transport systems for the 366th Communication Squadron. "VoIP phones offer us increased flexibility, reliability and mobility, as well as enhanced user interaction."

VoIP allows you to make a call directly from a computer, a VoIP phone, or a traditional phone connected to a special adapter by converting your voice into a digital signal which travels over the Internet instead of conventional copper wires.

"With our copper infrastructure, you have individual lines from phones throughout the building merging into one mass line for each building," said Tech. Sgt. Gregory Hiltbrunner, noncommissioned officer in charge of cyber transport systems for the 366th CS. "Then, each building's mass lines meet at the switch house where calls are transferred from sender to receiver.

"If a mass copper line is cut or damaged, the building it comes from loses everything," he continued. "With a network solution like VoIP, all the main network buildings on base are inter-connected and small incidents or damage will have no effect on service."

Hiltbrunner explained a tentative plan for VoIP installation and has some advice for base agencies looking into the funding the network upgrade.

"The key base buildings will receive the upgrades first," he said. "If agencies want these new phones soon they may end up having to fund it themselves. Also as new buildings are built or renovated, the plans have VoIP phones already in them to cut costs in half for each building."

Using less copper wire provides financial and environmental benefits.

"Initial savings will basically be from the miles of copper we don't have to buy or put in the ground because of the VoIP phones," Hiltbrunner said. "The copper wire on base is failing, and every day we find more and more of it is bad. For example, some copper lines going underneath the flightline stop working if they get wet.

"We can have private contractors coming on base to remove the old copper for recycling," he continued. "This way, we are actively working to be environmentally conscious. Eventually we will remove and recycle it ourselves in accordance with Department of Defense mandates."
Mountain Home AFB is also using the VoIP network to comply with another federal mandate.

"According to the Telework Enhancement Act of 2010, civilians must work from home a percentage of the week if they are able," Hiltbrunner said. "Now they can take their government laptop home, log into our network and work like they are at their desk. This saves both them and the base money. We actually have several civilians doing this currently."

Saving money by protecting and enhancing our resources while taking care of Gunfighters are two of the base commander's priorities the VoIP transition will accomplish.

"During this transition, hopefully customers will be patient because change is coming," he continued. "In the end this is the Air Force's vision, and the reality is we are implementing here at Mountain Home Air Force Base today."