Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Justin Geiger | Soldiers with 2-10 Assault Helicopter Battalion, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, use the...... read more read more
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MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU AIR BASE, Romania – Training can build confidence, foster trust and improve tactics, techniques and procedures so Soldiers can effectively and efficiently perform mission essential task to increase their nation’s combat readiness.
As Soldiers react instinctively during real-world missions or situational training exercises -- like conducting land navigation with a combat survival evader locator system or integrating with allied forces to perform combat search and rescue/personnel recovery procedures -- their efforts throughout training scenarios not only improve combined capabilities, but highlights how interoperable Romanian and U.S. aviation assets are while working together to accomplish a task.
These combined capabilities were apparent when Soldiers with 2-10 Assault Helicopter Battalion, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade and Romanian aviators with the 862nd Helicopter Squadron, executed personnel recovery Situational Training Exercise lanes and air movement operations near Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, October 2-5, 2017.
The purpose of this simulated downed aircraft training exercise was to build proficiency in survival, evasion, resistance and escape procedures, to familiarize 10th CAB Soldiers with the CSEL system and to develop combined personnel recovery operating procedures between NATO allies.
Over the past several days we’ve been conducting personnel recovery training with Romanian pilots, Romanian pararescue forces, our aviators and our crew chiefs, said CW3 Jason Penn, an aviation mission survivability officer with the 2-10 AHB “Task Force Knighthawk,” 10th CAB.
“And during the ground portion of the STX lanes, our Soldiers utilized the CSEL system to navigate through Babadag Training Area. The CSEL system also enabled us to communicate with a Joint Personnel Recovery Center,” he added.
When aviation personnel initiate the CSEL system, it contacts one of the JPRCs around the world and sends GPS coordinates from that radio to alerts them that an aircrew is on the ground and in an isolated situation. Once that communication is started the JPRC activates personnel recovery forces from the coalition force in their area of operations to rescue those individuals on ground.
In this simulated downed aircraft scenarios, the training JPRC with U.S. Army Europe “activated” Romanian aviation and pararescue assets from Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base to evacuate those isolated aircrews.
“For the aviators in the air, it was about getting familiar with conducting missions with allied forces,” said Penn. “In some situations you won’t know what allied or partner nation you’re going to work with, so you may not know what their operating procedures are going to be like, so being able to bring multinational aviation assets together to conduct a training exercise and get familiar with each others operating procedures are some of the biggest benefits for the pilots.”
During this training exercise, CW2 David Faris, a pilot with 2-10 AHB “Task Force Knighthawk,” 10th CAB got to experience flying alongside Romanian aviators for the first time while being deployed in Europe. Once the STX lanes were successfully complete he took a moment to discuss the process of working through the differences in operating procedures, and how overcoming those obstacles helped unify both aviation assets.
“The planning process allowed us to improve our collective operations,” he said. “The Romanians got a better understanding of how we operate and we got a better understanding of how they operate, so it is good to develop that common operating picture so we can deconflict to keep everyone safe and execute the missions effectively.”
Although the training exercise was effectively and efficiently executed, and every isolated aircrew evacuated by the 862nd Helicopter Squadron made it back safely, personnel recovery operations are very complex due to all the different assets involved. Therefore, conducting multinational training exercises of this magnitude enhance interoperability between Romania and the United States to build on the goal of establishing a unified and strong Europe.
| Date Taken: | 10.06.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 10.06.2017 14:45 |
| Story ID: | 250831 |
| Location: | RO |
| Web Views: | 107 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 'Isolated Knighthawk Soldiers' rescued by Romanian forces, by SFC Justin Geiger, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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