'Inactive' former Airmen return to Dyess for IRR muster

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Robert Hicks
  • 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Forty-nine individual ready reserve personnel traveled from as far away as 150 miles to participate in the IRR muster hosted by the 7th Bomb Wing here July 25. 

The purpose of a muster is to gather IRR members, made up of former regular Air Force Airmen and non-drilling reservists, and to maintain their contact information and availability for activation to support a partial, total or full mobilization activation scenario.
 
Muster participants are sent a packet containing orders, a notification letter and other fact sheets 90 days prior to the scheduled event. Those who attend the one-day event receive approximately $197 for expenses. 

"It's a requirement by federal law that annual musters are held to enhance readiness and improve on crisis situations," said Master Sgt. Stephanie Carter, Air Reserve Personnel Center IRR muster program manager in Denver. "We do this in three different ways: one-day musters, annual mail surveys and bi-annual push-pull exercises." 

Air Force officials select the names within a 150-mile radius of active-duty, Air Force Reserve, or Air National Guard bases. 

Col. Robert Gass, 7th Bomb Wing commander, opened the muster by welcoming all IRR members and thanking them for coming out to the one-day event. The muster included briefings from Reserve recruiters encouraging IRR members to join the Reserves. 

"I think the IRR muster went very well, and the participants were able to get good information that they didn't have before attending the muster," said Capt. Heather Wempe, 7th Force Support Squadron. July 25 was Captain Wempe's first time hosting a muster. 

The event brought back good memories for some who had not been on an Air force base in years. 

"I miss the Air Force; it was the best time of my life," said Lucas Smith. "I enjoyed the base community, and how they would say 'hi' every day." 

Mr. Smith, from Wheatherford, Texas, drove more than 115 miles to attend the muster. He spent 11 years in the military as an enlisted Airman and officer, and left the Air force as a captain.