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Airman to agent: AFOSI wants you

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Whitney Tucker
  • 36th Wing Public Affairs
Since the nation's inception more than 230 years ago, the image of a servicemember clad in camouflage and charging forward under a star spangled flag of red, white and blue has fostered feelings of patriotism and instilled an indelible sense of security in the American people.

However, U.S. citizens can also put their faith in a force that moves undetected, comprised of the most elite men and women the Air Force has to offer; an entity that works to identify and eradicate all manner of threats to the Air Force, Department of Defense and U.S. Government: the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.

For one Team Andersen member, the journey to joining the ranks of these elite Airmen began with an interest in the criminal justice system and a penchant for law enforcement T.V. dramas.

"Despite my early affinity for law enforcement I did not actively pursue a career as an agent until I heard about things I did not agree with going on in my unit," said Special Agent Jessie Harris, AFOSI Detachment 602. "I decided it was time to put myself in a position that enabled me to do something about it."

Stepping into the base AFOSI office for the first time, Special Agent Harris did not yet know he was on the brink of the most extensive and thorough application process he would ever undertake.

"Applying to become a member of AFOSI is by far the most strenuous and selective process I have ever been a part of," he said. "AFOSI cannot accept standard Airmen; they must possess superior mental and physical faculties and have a near-perfect record. There were many meetings in which agents tried to 'feel' me out, to determine if I had what it took to become a member."

After seven months of waiting and anticipation, Special Agent Harris was notified that he had successfully navigated the application processes and would soon move into AFOSI's rigorous training phase.

"All new recruits, whether officer, enlisted or civilian, receive entry-level training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, Ga.," the agent said. "The training requires each recruit to meet predetermined physical fitness standards and attend an 11-week criminal investigator training course with other federal law enforcement trainees."

"That course is followed by six weeks of AFOSI agency-specific coursework," Special Agent Harris continued. "Both courses offer new agents training in a myriad of areas including firearms and weaponry, defensive tactics, forensics, surveillance and surveillance detection, antiterrorism techniques, crime scene processing, interrogations and interviews, court testimony and military and federal law."

According to a February 2012 AFOSI article, after successful completion of a one-year probationary period in the field, some agents receive specialized training in economic crime, antiterrorism service, counterintelligence, computer crimes and other sophisticated criminal investigative capabilities. Others attend 12 weeks of training to acquire skills in electronic, photographic and other technical surveillance countermeasures.

Having paid for his badge with blood, sweat and tears, Special Agent Harris has long since earned the right to call himself a seasoned member of AFOSI and can look back on the mentally trying, physically taxing process with fond memories.

"I have been an AFOSI federal agent for the past four years," he said, "and I can honestly say they have been the best of my career thus far. AFOSI is like no other job. I wake up every day excited to go to work, knowing I get to enforce military standards and rid our Air Force of those who would seek to exploit it."

In an Air Force with hundreds of thousands of members, fewer than 3,000 Airmen answer to the title special agent.

"If you would like to pursue a career in AFOSI make sure you're doing it for the right reasons," Special Agent Harris said. "You must be able to manage multiple tasks at once, have excellent interpersonal relationship skills, superior physical fitness ability and above all else, common sense."

"I have talked with about 25 applicants during my time on Andersen," the agent continued, "of those 25 individuals, all but two were turned away. I think that speaks volumes as to the caliber of Airmen AFOSI accepts into the fold."

For more information about AFOSI, visit the AFOSI public website at www.osi.andrews.af.mil. Airmen interested in learning more about AFOSI training should visit the FLETC website at www.fletc.gov or contact Andersen's Detachment 602 at 366-2987.