Photo By Brian Valencia | Melissa Ochoa (left), 502nd Judge Advocate honorary commander and New York Life...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas –
Brig. Gen. Caroline Miller, commander, 502nd Air Base Wing and Joint Base San Antonio, hosted seven honorary commanders from across the Joint Base San Antonio metropolitan area for a tour of JBSA-Lackland March 25.
As honorary commanders, the community leaders participate in a variety of special events during their two-year term, allowing them to interact with JBSA service members and learn more about the missions of different units.
"The 502nd ABW Honorary Commander program is unique,” Miller said. “During the first year of the program, our civic leaders have an opportunity to learn about our mission. The following year, we have a chance to highlight our mission partners and the great things that they do.”
During last year’s tours, our civic leaders gained insight into the operations and responsibilities of the 502nd ABW. This year, our civics are learning about our mission partners, starting off with the 433rd Airlift Wing and Special Warfare Training Wing.
At the 433rd AW, the group was welcomed by Col. Terry W. McClain, commander of the Air Force Reserve Command-affiliated wing.
McClain briefed the group about the five different squadrons and their missions, explaining there were two squadrons training Airmen on C-5s; an operational support squadron that supplies logistics; an aeromedical evacuation squadron; and the 68th Airlift squadron, responsible for worldwide mobility.
“The C-5M Super Galaxy is the biggest airplane in the United States military inventory and the second largest in the world,” McClain told the group.
After learning its primary mission of transporting cargo and personnel for the Department of Defense with a cargo hold capable of transporting up to 281,001 pounds, the group headed to the flight line to see the inside of a C-5M.
“This is awesome,” said Sylvia Rincon, Southside Independent School District communications representative business development officer. “We get to act like kids inside a C-5, see the seating area and sit in the cockpit. I’m amazed at how big it is.”
"The tour of the 433rd Airlift Wing was fantastic,” said honorary commander Melissa Ochoa, president of the San Antonio LGBT Chamber. “I've lived in San Antonio for 30 years and always see the C-5 planes flying around, but there's something different about walking into one and seeing the inside. It is huge and amazing how it can be so big and heavy and still fly.”
The tour continued to the JBSA-Chapman Training Annex to visit the Special Warfare Training Wing facility, where several SWTW members greeted the civic leaders at the Memorial of the Fallen Special Forces Airmen flagpole site.
The group then went to the Special Forces operations training facility where state-of-the-art fitness equipment is provided for service members to conduct physical training and rehabilitation.
The honorary commanders visited six stations, where they were educated on nutrition, body composition, metabolic assessment, strength and conditioning, and the use of the blood flow restriction when using weights.
Air Force pararescue, or PJ, specialists then gave a demonstration on how to use a medical tourniquet. Pararescuemen are Air Force Special Operations Command and Air Combat Command operators tasked with the recovery and medical treatment of personnel in humanitarian and combat environments.
“The paramedics have a more increased scope of practice in San Antonio than in other states, giving our students the ability to train much closer to our protocols,” said Master Sgt. Sean Anderson, superintendent of the Modernized Pararescue Provider Program, or MP3. “The students have 450 hours of clinical time with the San Antonio Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services. The medical MP3 course has three overall phases that the PJs must complete, are the EMT, paramedic and combat medic phase.”
“I was fascinated by the Personalized Tourniquet System,” Ochoa said. “I learned how to use a tourniquet for bleeding injuries. Overall the tour was very interesting to me and I'm grateful I had the opportunity to attend."
| Date Taken: | 04.04.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 04.25.2022 17:57 |
| Story ID: | 419248 |
| Location: | SAN ANTONIO, TX, US |
| Web Views: | 77 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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