MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan -- This is part one in a series highlighting the teams charged with keeping Misawa's airfield mission-ready at all times.

While Misawa is known for the mighty F-16 Fighting Falcon, its runway hosts many air frames from all U.S. military services, several partner nations and even civilian air lines each month.

A small team of 10 Airmen ensure every takeoff and landing on this 12.5 million square foot airfield can be executed smoothly; the safety of pilots depends on the upkeep of the airfield as much as the maintenance performed on their aircraft.

The 35th Operations Support Squadron airfield management team is responsible for maintenance, lighting and many more components and systems located on the strip of pavement that is arguably every aircraft's ticket to the sky--and back home to family.

“We are responsible for overseeing all airfield management facilities and services to provide a safe, efficient and effective airfield environment for aircraft operations,” said Airman Aruna Cruickshank, a 35th OSS airfield management shift lead. “We are a focal point for all airfield operations coordinating aircrew and field support with 14 base agencies, ensuring pilot and aircraft safety. If we miss a foreign object or don't catch a discrepancy on the runway, that is a pilot's life on the line. Keeping the runway 100 percent mission ready at all times allows our base to stay ready and deployable; this is why we are so meticulous with each inspection we do every single day.”