Foreign travel requires planning, preperations to maximize safey

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  • By 81st Training Wing
KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  You arrived in Cairo on vacation to visit the pyramids of Egypt and settle in for the night.

You awake to find rioters, police and tanks filling the streets. Cell phones, the Internet and phone systems don't work. Would you know what to do? Who do you turn to for help? Where are they located and can you get there on your own?

Considering recent events, this scenario is more reality than fiction. Situations like this, as well as others, clearly indicate foreign travel requires more than a passport and ticket. It takes planning and preparation.

"Let's face it--it's too late to plan when the rioters and tanks are in the street and all communication with the outside world is lost," said Ken Oates, Keesler's anti-terrorism chief "At that point, the only thing your phone is good for is taking pictures and video of the government buildings burning and that's probably a bad idea itself."

Mr. Oates serves as Keesler's focal point for unofficial travel to any location outside of the continental United States and works closely with other offices to facilitate such journeys.

Military members and civilian employees must abide by certain policies and regulations designed to ensure their safety and security.

"These policies ensure travelers enter and exit foreign destinations legally and avoid high-risk or off-limits areas,"Mr. Oates explained.

From a force protection standpoint, all vacation destinations have risks whether it is a terrorist event, natural or manmade disaster, or civil unrest, Mr. Oates emphasized. "The key is to avoid or at least mitigate those risks through a well-designed and comprehensive emergency action plan shared with travel companions and a trusted
friend at home."

To facilitate safe travel, Keesler's travel policy requires military personnel to complete a travel checklist for any OCONUS location while on leave or on pass. This ensures proper preparation and clearances for travel.

Vacation travel often requires pre-departure training, briefings, and submission of documentation to the responsible combatant command responsible for geographic areas of the globe. Combatant commands are responsible for Defense Department personnel assigned to their commands as well as those traveling to and within them. This is true even for military, dependent, and civilian employees on leave or pass.

In many cases, the combatant command must approve travel, which can take more than 30 days. Travel to some locations even requires the approval of a colonel or higher rank.

"There is no singular off-limits list, but there's a comprehensive resource that personnel must use as a starting point called the Foreign Clearance Guide," Mr. Oates said. "It applies to military, dependants and DOD employees for both official and unofficial travel."

While it states it's a guide, the FCG is actually regulatory and lists travel and entry requirements for each specific country. It also identifies if the country is off-limits or has off-limits areas within it.

The FCG is available online through any .mil domain system at https://www.fcg.pentagon.mil/fcg.cfm. It can be accessed from a public network by establishing an account through the website.

"The requirements found here are typically set by the responsible combatant command,"Mr. Oates pointed out. "Often, the restrictions and requirements aren't as tasking as for civilians and dependents as compared to our military personnel, but those identified are still required.

"Additionally, other levels of command can establish off-limits areas, although these may or may not be listed in the FCG," he continued. "An example of this is Air Education and Training Command's designation of an off-limits area in Mexico. It's my job to keep up with these types of directives and restrictions."

The Keesler Anti-terrorism Community of Practice on the Air Force Knowledge Now System is a repository for other travel requirements, including the current policy for the 81st Training Wing established by the installation commander. Mr. Oates can provide access to interested personnel.

"The bottom line is to contact me well ahead of any OCONUS travel," Mr. Oates stressed.

For more information or to begin the planning process for foreign travel, call Mr. Oates, 377-2808 or e-mail junius.oates.1@us.af.mil.