New ANG exercise: Ho'oikaika strengthens TFI partnerships

Photo By Staff Sgt. James Ro | F-22 Raptors assigned to the Hawaii Air National Guard 199th Fighter Squadron and the active duty 19th Fighter Squadron, are staged on the flightline of Marine Corps Base Kaneohe, HI Mar. 3, 2022 during Agile Combat Employment exercise Hoʻoikaika. ACE is an operational concept that leverages networks of well-established and austere air bases, multi-capable airmen, pre-positioned equipment, and airlift to rapidly deploy, disperse and maneuver combat capability throughout a theater. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by 2nd Lt. James Ro)  

JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HI, UNITED STATES

03.13.2022

Courtesy Story

154th Wing, Hawaii Air National Guard

The Hawaii Air National Guard's 154th Wing successfully executed a first-of-its-kind exercise partnering with the Nevada Air National Guard, 15th Wing, and 354th Fighter Wing Airmen on March 3 to 6.

The exercise name, Ho'oikaika, originates from the Hawaiian language, meaning to strengthen and to encourage, as it challenged total force Airmen to mobilize and generate stealth airpower from three separate locations throughout the multi-island state.

In a rapid dispersal of F-22 Raptors, the training relied heavily on airlift capabilities, provided by locally-based C-17 Globemaster IIIs and visiting C-130s from Nevada, each delivering support packages to the forward-operating locations at Marine Corps Base Kaneohe and Hilo International Airport.

"Ho'oikaika, is a new way of conducting exercises,'' said the 154th Wing Inspector General," gently getting rid of as many simulations as we can by uniquely challenging the skillsets of our Airmen. We've never seen an exercise that is being challenged in multiple locations for a single organization."

Teams of support Airmen poured out of each cargo aircraft, setting up a mobile infrastructure to provide for aircraft maintenance, weapon systems, navigational equipment, communication stations, security details, a single pallet expeditionary kitchen and more.

Capt. Jonothan Harris, 15th Wing Agile Combat Employment chief and Kaneohe MCB exercise lead, explains the top three goals: to continue generating airpower from airlift, evaluate command and control decisions and actions and test their interoperable communications.

"Having airlift compete with inter-theater requirements versus what the hub and spokes' need, and seeing leadership command team make the decisions process of how could we get the people and parts in the right place at the right time to get F-22'a airborne while still their ATO missions, definitely tests that airlift opportunity," said Harris.

Unlike previously held exercises, participants were challenged to step outside the boundaries of their specialized career fields as part of the Air Force's multi-capable Airman initiative. Members on the ground parted with their regular duty sections and assisted with critical flight line operations, granting new levels of authority to exercise 'players' and making a more autonomous force.

While only spanning three days long, Ho'oikaika can be considered to be an exercise built within an exercise, having all activities falling in between the routinely-held dissimilar aircraft training event, called Pacific Raptor 22-1.

Past iterations of PR focused on locally-generated combat training between the Hawaiian Raptors, enabled by full-time staff and visiting partners, such as the 18th Aggressor Squadron F-16 Fighting Falcons from Alaska. But for the duration of Ho'oikaika, the vast majority of the 154th Wing was activated to employ the same airpower from each alternate location.

Airman 1st Class John Vasko, 292nd Combat Communications Squadron radio frequency transmission systems apprentice, said, "our mission is to be able to deploy anytime, anywhere. We have to be able to set up communication links from one point to another, anywhere in the world. Being able to communicate enables the rest of the services to work more effectively together."

According to the Inspector General Team, which planned and orchestrated the exercise, operational complexity and stress levels soard throughout the employment of agile-combat capabilities. However, the intensified training regimen resulted in an invaluable set of notes, experiences and a sense of confidence for exercise participants.

"This is just a stepping stone into the things we want to get better at and a place where we want to grow from," said the Inspector General, "I am absolutely proud."

• Date Taken: 03.13.2022
• Date Posted: 03.14.2022 01:06
• Story ID: 416392
• Location: JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HI, US