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The terrorist threat coupled with a global military mission necessitates quick and accurate identification of environmental hazards, and CBRN early warning. The Air Force Institute for Operational Health (AFIOH) provides fundamental support to protect personnel from and mitigate the effects of untoward hazards exposures. Sustaining healthy communities since 1955, the organizational charter is to enhance warfighter mission effectiveness, protect health, improve readiness and reduce costs, assess and manage risks to human heath and safety, operational performance and the environment. The AFIOH Surveillance Directorate provides forward deployed and reach-back surveillance, agent identification, and environ-mental regulatory compliance testing. Three unique laboratories process and analyze over two million environmental samples and clinical specimens per year, providing analytical chemistry, radiological assessment, and infectious disease testing, in addition to supporting Air Force and Department of Defense (DoD) clinical reference laboratory and force health protection testing. Each laboratory has an applied or investigational testing section where new technologies and techniques are evaluated, and expert consultative support to assist in technology assessments and test analyses. The Epidemiology Surveillance Laboratory and Analytical Chemistry Laboratory are critical assets of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Laboratory Response Network. Deployable assets provide direct support to the Combatant Commander and include the Air Force Radiological Assessment Team, and the Biological Augmentation Team. A diverse directorate, the synergistic CBRN response capabilities are a commander’s force protection tool, critical to maintaining combat power.

An ever-expanding global military mission necessitates quick and accurate identification of biological hazards, whether naturally occurring or man-made. Coupled with an ever-present threat of biological attack, an expanded U.S. presence in worn-torn locations like Southwest Asia presents unique public health challenges. We must heed modern day "lessons learned" from Operation Desert Shield and the Soviet Afghanistan Campaign and guard against rapid incapacitation of troop strength from endemic disease and biological attack. To minimize readiness impacts, field hygiene is enforced, and research on better medical countermeasures such as antibiotics and vaccines continues. However, there are no preventions or remedies for all military-relevant infectious diseases or biological agents. A deployable, streamlined, self-contained diagnostic and public health surveillance laboratory capability with a reach-back communication is critical to meeting global readiness challenges. Current deployable laboratory packages comprise primarily diagnostic or environmental sample testing capabilities. Discussion will focus on critical components needed to improve existing laboratory assets, and to facilitate deployment of small, specialized packages far forward. The ideal laboratory model described will become an essential tool for the Combatant or Incident Commander to maintain force projection in the expeditionary environment.