After seeing significant reductions in motorcycle deaths and ground safety incidents in fiscal 2008, U.S. Air Forces in Europe headquarters garnered two of the Air Force’s top safety awards.

The command won the Secretary of the Air Force Safety Award and the Col. Will L. Tubbs Memorial Award for Ground Safety, according to a USAFE news release.

Led by Col. William G. Routt, the 18-member USAFE safety staff oversees flight, ground and weapons safety operations at U.S. air bases in Europe.

"Safety is absolutely essential to conducting our mission and to protecting critical resources, including our people," USAFE’s commander, Gen. Roger A. Brady, said in the release.

In fiscal 2008, USAFE had one fatal motorcycle accident and no off-duty vehicle fatalities, four fewer than the previous year, according to the news release. It was the command’s safest year since 1994 and its lowest number of off-duty fatalities in 20 years.

"We had zero crashes and zero weapons systems [issues]," Michael Ballard, deputy director of the USAFE safety directorate, said in the release.

Ballard credited work done by safety staffs at each U.S. air base in Europe to support the safety campaign theme, "Your Life, Your Choice, Choose Wisely."

The Tubbs Award is named after the officer who established the U.S. Army Air Corps’ first ground safety program. He later served as civilian chief of the Air Force Ground Safety Program.

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