Photo By Senior Airman Trenton Jancze | U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Anabel Del Valle, right, 1st Combat Camera Squadron combat...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. – It’s 11 p.m. on a cold November night.
Teams of combat camera professionals tactically make their way through the dense Lowcountry woods as they race against the clock. Their mission – to combat misinformation through documentation and reach their designated extraction site without being spotted by adversary forces.
Every move is deliberate. Every step is calculated.
The creeping chill of winter air bites at their skin as they scan the perimeter. With only the eerie glow of the moon across the landscape, they must rely on their night vision equipment while maintaining complete light and noise discipline.
This is no ordinary training exercise. This is where combat camera adaptability and expertise are put to the test. This is exercise Green Goblin.
Green Goblin is one of the 1st Combat Camera Squadron’s premier readiness exercises with a primary objective of training and evaluating combat camera professionals on night-vision, tactics, and enhanced visual information techniques within low-light and no-light environments.
“Low-light and no-light conditions present unique challenges that demand specialized equipment and skills when it comes to visual storytelling in austere and combat conditions,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Raymond Geoffroy, 1 CTCS commander. “As the Air Force’s total force combat camera team, we’re focused on building our Airmen into teams that possess the readiness required to survive and thrive in an emerging era of great power competition.”
While the Department of the Air Force continues to reshape, refocus and reoptimize to maintain superiority in its respective domain, 1 CTCS also evolves to align with the four pillars of reoptimization: Develop People, Generate Readiness, Project Power and Develop Capabilities.
One of the first steps in this evolution is strategic training and expert instruction.
As the silhouetted figures of Green Goblin teams emerge from the tree line, combat camera professionals step into a field of darkness where they’re met by a series of events aimed at testing their adaptability under pressure.
Scenarios conducted throughout the exercise put an emphasis on combat camera technical and tactical skillsets and include: low-light imagery, small unit tactics, weapons familiarization, sensitive sight exploitation, counter improvised explosive devices, and aeromedical evacuation procedures.
The scenarios provide participants with unforeseen circumstances, requiring each member to quickly adjust from securing the threat, to capturing the information in front of them. Switching from weapon systems to camera systems, in a controlled environment, builds confidence to achieve obligations of a down range mission when they get the call.
The confidence and skillsets supported during Green Goblin reinforce mission-ready Airmen and their preparation for operating in austere locations.
After conquering a steady flow of various scenarios, the teams finally approach their extraction site. As they get closer, the ominous sound of foreign footsteps alerts them to their six o’clock position.
Adversary forces have spotted the teams during their missions.
Within a fraction of a second, gunfire erupts throughout the woods; the combat camera professionals must quickly find cover and engage their targets.
“It’s important for 1 CTCS to combine training with the strategic adjustments needed to enhance mission support effectiveness,” said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Edward Coddington, 1 CTCS Green Goblin exercise director. “We’re truly focused on equipping and enabling our teams to adapt and excel in challenges they may face as the contested environment continues to change.”
Just as the fire fight dies down and the Green Goblin teams have taken the advantage over adversary forces, a cry rips through the exercise area.
“We need a medic! Someone help!”
Without a medic, it’s up to the teams to put their tactical combat casualty care and combat life saver training to use during this final scenario.
While the tourniquets are tightened and 9-line medical evacuations are called in, cadre assess the true readiness capabilities of the participants in real-time.
As an expeditionary requirement for operational demands under the Air Force Force Generation deployment model, Ready Airmen Training provides a systematic approach to evaluate the operational readiness of personnel and equipment.
“By integrating RAT into training, our operations team is able to identify strengths and weaknesses while facilitating targeted improvements to members’ readiness statuses,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Samuel Hays, 1 CTCS Operations flight chief. “This allows us to improve our processes and streamline the way we prepare our teams for deployment taskings.”
Incorporating these readiness frameworks ensures combat camera professionals can quickly adapt to the evolving threats and operational requirements, enhancing the overall effectiveness of the highly-deployed squadron.
Green Goblin prepares 1 CTCS to meet future challenges effectively, maintaining a competitive edge against potential adversaries in emerging areas of responsibility.
“During Green Goblin, we come together as a total force team, receive instruction from an incredibly diverse team of experts and practice our skills in high stress environments,” said Geoffroy. “Training like this builds our Airmen into teams that are uniquely trained and equipped to operate and communicate whenever the mission demands our support. I couldn’t be prouder.”
As 1 CTCS adapts to meet the demands of an advanced warfighting posture, Green Goblin will continue to ensure combat camera professionals are ready to demonstrate the combat-ready credibility needed to counter misinformation and accentuate deterrence in the Great Power Competition.
| Date Taken: | 11.18.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 12.13.2024 13:26 |
| Story ID: | 487450 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 50 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Green Goblin hones readiness, preps 1 CTCS for Great Power Competition, by SSgt Bailee Darbasie, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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