In your military career, you have probably never really paid attention to that “weird looking black thing” that should be attached to your government owned vehicle key ring.
That “thing” that you haven’t noticed is actually called a vehicle identification link key. The VIL key holds information that is valuable to various people throughout the wing. Let’s go through the process of how your GOV is authorized to fuel up at a military service station.
So, your section just received a new GOV (or more accurately, slightly used. Times are tough, you know).
There are a few things that need to happen before your new GOV can get gas at the military service station. First, your squadron’s vehicle control officer will accomplish a Memorandum for Record for the Logistics Readiness Squadron’s Petroleum, Oils and Lubricant flight. The information required on this MFR will include your unit’s fuel billing information, the registration number, make, model, year and the fuel grade of the vehicle.
Once signed, the VCO or representative takes the MFR and a VIL key to the POL flight. The professionals in the POL Fuels Service Center will verify the billing information on the letter and encode the VIL key with the information from the MFR. Congratulations. You are now authorized to use the military service station to get gas for your GOV.
After you have filled up your authorized GOV at the military service station, you simply drive away, but the process continues. At the end of the day, those same professionals in the POL Fuels Service Center, will download and verify every transaction that took place throughout the day. They verify proper information, ensure that no one is pilfering fuel, and look for potential vehicle or VIL key abuse. After this information has been validated, he or she will send the information to the Defense Logistics Agency for billing. Your squadron’s resource adviser then verifies all of their specific transactions and reports this information to their respective commander.
Now let’s go over some do’s and don’ts once you get to the military service station.
DON’T use the VIL key to fill up any vehicles other than the one that is “assigned” to that specific VIL Key.
• The VIL key is vehicle and fuel grade specific and if it’s used as it’s supposed to be, you will never put the wrong grade of fuel in your vehicle.
• It also allows resource advisers to accurately track fuel costs and specific vehicle usage.
DO clean up any small spill you may have at the pump.
• There is “kitty litter” and spill supplies available for all types of cleanup. If assistance is required, you can contact the POL Fuels Service Center at 480-5821.
DON’T use the military service station to attempt to refuel privately owned vehicles.
• There are too many tracking and verification devices in place for you to get away with it. Just pay like the rest of us.
DO feel free to use the military service station 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
DON’T smoke or use your cellular device while refueling your GOV.
While the “little black thing” on your key ring may have previously gone unnoticed by you, hopefully you now realize that a VIL key serves a valuable role in the big picture of getting fuel from the fuel tank to your GOV while allowing POL, resource advisers and squadron commanders to efficiently bill, manage and track fuel costs.
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News for the Ramstein, Kaiserslautern, Landstuhl & Baumholder military communities in Germany 
In your military career, you have probably never really paid attention to that “weird looking black thing” that should be attached to your government owned vehicle key ring.
That “thing” that you haven’t noticed is actually called a vehicle identification link key. The VIL key holds information that is valuable to various people throughout the wing. Let’s go through the process of how your GOV is authorized to fuel up at a military service station.
So, your section just received a new GOV (or more accurately, slightly used. Times are tough, you know).
There are a few things that need to happen before your new GOV can get gas at the military service station. First, your squadron’s vehicle control officer will accomplish a Memorandum for Record for the Logistics Readiness Squadron’s Petroleum, Oils and Lubricant flight. The information required on this MFR will include your unit’s fuel billing information, the registration number, make, model, year and the fuel grade of the vehicle.
Once signed, the VCO or representative takes the MFR and a VIL key to the POL flight. The professionals in the POL Fuels Service Center will verify the billing information on the letter and encode the VIL key with the information from the MFR. Congratulations. You are now authorized to use the military service station to get gas for your GOV.
After you have filled up your authorized GOV at the military service station, you simply drive away, but the process continues. At the end of the day, those same professionals in the POL Fuels Service Center, will download and verify every transaction that took place throughout the day. They verify proper information, ensure that no one is pilfering fuel, and look for potential vehicle or VIL key abuse. After this information has been validated, he or she will send the information to the Defense Logistics Agency for billing. Your squadron’s resource adviser then verifies all of their specific transactions and reports this information to their respective commander.
Now let’s go over some do’s and don’ts once you get to the military service station.
DON’T use the VIL key to fill up any vehicles other than the one that is “assigned” to that specific VIL Key.
• The VIL key is vehicle and fuel grade specific and if it’s used as it’s supposed to be, you will never put the wrong grade of fuel in your vehicle.
• It also allows resource advisers to accurately track fuel costs and specific vehicle usage.
DO clean up any small spill you may have at the pump.
• There is “kitty litter” and spill supplies available for all types of cleanup. If assistance is required, you can contact the POL Fuels Service Center at 480-5821.
DON’T use the military service station to attempt to refuel privately owned vehicles.
• There are too many tracking and verification devices in place for you to get away with it. Just pay like the rest of us.
DO feel free to use the military service station 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
DON’T smoke or use your cellular device while refueling your GOV.
While the “little black thing” on your key ring may have previously gone unnoticed by you, hopefully you now realize that a VIL key serves a valuable role in the big picture of getting fuel from the fuel tank to your GOV while allowing POL, resource advisers and squadron commanders to efficiently bill, manage and track fuel costs.