Photo By Airman 1st Class Adrien Tran | U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to the 21st Combat Air Base Squadron relocate building...... read more read more
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DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas – The 21st Air Task Force participated in exercise Bamboo Eagle 25-3, July 31st to August 9th at Camp Robinson, Arkansas.
BE 25-3 is a U.S. Air Force Warfare Center exercise and the final component of the Department of the Air Force’s Department-Level Exercise series. The 10-day exercise, spanning multiple major commands and geographic locations, provided the 21st ATF an opportunity to test Agile Combat Employment concepts in a realistic expeditionary environment.
“This exercise has been a great opportunity to expand on the things that we’ve learned previously in other exercises,” said Lt. Col. Nathaniel White, 21st Combat Air Base Squadron commander. “Coming here, to this next level of training and evolution, has enabled the 21st CABS to not only put our skills into practice, but employ ourselves within the ACE scheme of maneuver.”
The 21st ATF brought together Airmen from Dyess AFB, Texas; Moody AFB, Georgia; Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina; and medical personnel from Eglin AFB, Florida. Throughout their Air Force Force Generation cycle, the team trains together to build familiarity and effectiveness across multiple mission support specialties in austere environments.
“Participating in Bamboo Eagle helped showcase our talent,” said 1st Lt. Zoey Monroe, 21st ATF director of financial management. “We demonstrated how flexible, agile and resilient we are as a team, highlighting our key strengths and identifying areas for improvement.”
Operating as a fully integrated Unit of Action, the 21st ATF and CABS executed base setup, command and control operations, emergency response protocols and field sustainment, all under conditions designed to simulate the speed and complexity of modern conflict.
The exercise marked a significant milestone for the 21st ATF with the employment of newly certified small Unmanned Aircraft System operators. This added capability allows the unit to integrate sUAS operations into traditional mission frameworks, preparing Airmen for an evolving battlefield environment.
Additionally, the 19th Airlift Wing from Little Rock AFB, Arkansas, supported austere landing zone operations with a C-130J Super Hercules, enabling the 21st ATF to conduct tactical loading procedures in a forward-deployed setting.
“Bamboo Eagle, a complex, multidimensional exercise, is critical to the 21st ATF’s mission readiness in today’s complex operational environment,” said Col. Thomas Walsh, 21st ATF commander. “It allows us to stress-test our tactics, techniques and procedures, sustainment processes, and our command and control systems, ensuring we are ready to respond to various contingencies in the Indo-Pacific theater.”
Bamboo Eagle 25-3 served as a proving ground for the 21st ATF’s ability to deploy rapidly, establish initial operating capabilities, and sustain operations with minimal infrastructure, delivering on the promise of a combat-credible force, ready when called.
| Date Taken: | 08.08.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 08.10.2025 14:11 |
| Story ID: | 545264 |
| Location: | LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS, US |
| Web Views: | 104 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 21st ATF sharpens mission readiness at exercise BE 25-3, by SrA Alondra Cristobal Hernandez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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