Photo By Capt. Jeffrey Bezore | U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Timothy Horton, fire chief of the 165th Fire...... read more read more
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CLAY NATIONAL GUARD CENTER, Marietta, Ga. – Members of the 165th Fire Emergency Services Flight, 165th Airlift Wing, Georgia Air National Guard conducted their annual live-fire training at the Savannah Combat Readiness and Training Center in Garden City on Oct. 3, 2015. The fire training was conducted during their October unit training assembly.
The goal of the 165th FESF is to provide quality and timely fire prevention, education and protection.
To accomplish this goal the unit has to maintain all its ratings for not only the U.S. Air Force but also for the Federal Aviation Administration.
“The annual live-fire training is a requirement for all firefighters,” said Chief Master Sgt. Timothy H. Horton, fire chief of the 165th FESF. “We use it so our members can demonstrate proper technique and get practice fighting real fires.”
The facilities the 165th FESF trains at offer a tremendous benefit towards maintaining their ratings. The fire simulator is a unique resource that only a few National Guard units have. Units from around the Guard travel to train at the CRTC fire simulator.
The 165th FESF began their training with a scenario involving an aircraft crash. Two P-19 crash trucks circled around the nose of the plane to combat the flames. The first truck swung in and swept the flames from around the ladder side of the aircraft. The second truck was in position to cover and combat any flames from the off-pilot side, pilot side and rescue side. It took the two teams roughly 90 seconds to completely extinguish the flames.
“Our job is constantly evolving and no two fires are ever alike,” said Technical Sgt. John Skinner a firefighter with the 165th FESF.
In the second half of the training members practiced using the hand line. This allowed the firefighters to get up close to the flames and practice putting them out. Several four person teams, known as P-Teams, combated flames involving different scenarios. Teams alternated combating simulated fuel fires located off of the nose of the plane. Members then rotated among each other so everyone was able to be at the front and train with the nozzle.
The next scenario involved putting out simulated engine fires. The fire training simulator is able to replicate both a high wing aircraft engine cell as well as a low wing aircraft engine cell. This gives the firefighters valuable experience combating the two most likely engine fires they would encounter.
“We trained for two different types of aircraft, and with that comes applying different firefighting techniques,” said Senior Master Sgt. Jason Copeland, a fire chief at the 165th FESF.
After the training members re-hydrated and conducted an informal after action report. Leadership was very encouraged with the member’s techniques and aggression in combating the flames.
“The 165th FESF provides a very critical mission for not only the 165th Airlift Wing, but also for the CRTC, airport tenants at the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport and the neighboring communities,” said Horton.
Currently the 165th FESF has mutual aid agreements with the South Side Fire Department, Savannah Fire & Emergency Services, the Pooler Fire Department, the Garden City Fire Department and the Port Wentworth Fire Department. In 2014 the 165th FESF responded to 240 emergency response events which included things from structural fire responses to motor vehicle collisions and fires.
This unique partnership displays how National Guard units are ready and equipped to not only respond locally but globally as well. Currently six members of the 165th FESF are deployed overseas in Southwest Asia.
The 165th FESF has been nationally recognized as one of the premier firefighting units in the country and has received the ANG Fire Chief Association State Award five times in a 12 year span.
| Date Taken: | 10.09.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 10.09.2015 08:16 |
| Story ID: | 178551 |
| Location: | SAVANNAH, GA, US |
| Web Views: | 260 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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