MDL aircrews train for survival

JOINT BASE JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, UNITED STATES

11.15.2016

Story by Airman 1st Class Zachary Martyn 

Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst

Autumn sun spilled through the South Jersey pines. The engine of a USAF refueling aircraft hummed somewhere in the distant sky. On the forest floor, Airmen spoke softly through a hand held radio, evading capture.



During the Advanced Combat Operations and Tactics exercise Nov. 8, MDL aircrews were pushed to the limit to ensure they are prepared for their worst case scenario.



"This was a top-down event," said Staff Sgt. Jared Todd, Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape NCO in charge of operations and training for the 305th Operations Group. "From the Air Force refuelers and the Marine Corps helicopters all the way down to the SERE specialists and the isolated Airmen, everyone played a part."



The simulated enemy wasn’t far behind – the Airmen on the ground knew they needed to get moving. They coordinated with the refueler circling overhead via encrypted radio codes to prevent their location being compromised.



"The training is designed to teach us how to get to safety and then reach out for help to get assets to us to get rescued" said Staff Sgt. Andy Keiser, a 32nd Air Refueling Squadron boom operator, who went through the SERE training that could someday save his life . "Being flyers over combat environments puts us at risk, so it is useful training."



The aircrews received an added dose of reality during a surprise call early in the exercise: They would be involved with a full scale rescue of five simulated isolated personnel, an operation requiring flexibility and great speed, because it could mean the difference between life and death.



"We threw a wrench into the warfighter's plans by having downed Airmen," said Todd. "The Marine Corps Tactical Recovery of Aircraft and Personnel Platoon coordinated with the in-air refuelers to deliver rapid recovery of the isolated personnel."



Through teamwork and communication, the Airmen navigated through the dense pines and decaying bunkers of a bygone era to the edge of an open field where they called in for rescue. All the while, camouflaging themselves in the thick fall-colored brush growing beneath the evergreens.



The belly of a UH-1 Huey nearly scraped the top of the pines as it blasted into the landing zone, covered by two AH-1 Cobra. The Marine Corps TRAP team poured out of the Huey in a fluid motion and took control of the landing zone and recovered the Airmen.



Blades of grass were sent swirling into a tornado as the Huey took off with the Airmen safely aboard. The mission was a success.


"It's training that you never want to have to use, but it's incredibly vital," said Keiser. "It's better to have the training and not need it, than need it and not have it."

• Date Taken: 11.15.2016
• Date Posted: 12.07.2016 13:59
• Story ID: 216712
• Location: JOINT BASE JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, US