SCHRIEVER AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. - Team Schriever responded to simulated scenarios March 10 – 16, 2017, as part of an installation exercise, Opinicus Vista 17-1.
Led by the 50th Space Wing Inspector General office, the exercise tested the wing’s ability to respond to threats as well as transferring to backup locations.
Airmen with the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 22nd Space Operations Squadrons and 50th Space Communications Squadron deployed and executed a continuity of all the operations centers transfer, which enabled crews to perform operations at their backup facilities. Overall, the wing deployed more than 60 personnel in support of the exercise.
“The purpose of exercises is to test our ability to respond to different inputs,” said Capt. Valencia Gore, 50th Space Wing inspection planner. “We test on different scenarios to see how well training was conducted; by identifying what the units are deficient in, the wing has the ability to improve.”
The exercise started with a welding accident scenario. It involved a contractor working in the restricted area when a welding tank exploded causing a power outage. Responders arrived and performed a confined space rescue; the simulated accident served as a catalyst for units to deploy to other bases to continue mission operations.
The 50 SW members went to Vandenberg, Kirtland and Hill Air Force Bases to stand up their backup locations.
Master Sgt. Brian Contreras, 50 SW superintendent, deployed to observe the 2nd Space Operations Squadron’s performance.
“There was definitely an improvement compared to the last exercise,” said Contreras. “It was like night and day. They were one of the first ones to stand up. I could see they reviewed issues from last time and fixed them, which makes it beneficial to do a COOP.”
Toward the end of the exercise, an active shooter scenario took place at the Missile Defense Agency.
“An active-shooter scenario tests the ability of a facility’s occupants to respond and the ability and timeliness of security forces response,” said Lou Fischer, IG inspections director. “We were assisting the MDA as they are currently developing their active shooter response procedures.”
According to the IG office, the base still has areas of improvement, but the units have proven to be more effective in carrying out the mission.
“Muscle memory is key. If you train incorrectly, then you execute incorrectly,” said Gore. “It’s important to continuously train so the wing can execute properly when a situation arises. The next step is to take all the lessons learned from the exercises to the units so there is a constant improvement for the wing.”
The next exercise, OV 17-2 is in the planning stages. Scheduled for June, it will focus on emergency management and disease containment.
| Date Taken: | 03.21.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 03.21.2017 18:00 |
| Story ID: | 227606 |
| Location: | COLORADO SPRINGS, US |
| Web Views: | 25 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Schriever concludes OV 17-1, by SSgt Arielle Vasquez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
LEAVE A COMMENT