Photo By Staff Sgt. Branden Rae | Staff Sgt. Iyana Smith, 67th Aerial Port Squadron aerial porter, left, is being...... read more read more
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HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah -- Airmen of the 419th Fighter Wing practiced deploying and operating under stress during exercise Griffin FLEX Nov. 8-9, 2025. The wing ran a series of realistic, integrated scenarios that tested maintenance, logistics, medical and security functions across every squadron to validate the wing’s combat-deployable capability.
“Our mission is to deploy combat-ready citizen Airmen,” Col. Bradley Klemesrud, 419th Fighter Wing commander, said. “Airmen must be ready now to fulfill that mission wherever they are called. Exercises like Griffin FLEX let us confirm strengths and expose areas we must strengthen.”
Griffin FLEX put Airmen into a simulated deployment environment that mirrored the tempo, resource constraints and operational friction of real-world contingencies. Participants launched and serviced aircraft, loaded munitions and pallets, erected expeditionary shelters, processed deployment paperwork, and operated heavy vehicles while responding to simulated security breaches, personnel shortages and equipment failures.
Teams met each challenge with the determination expected of the 419th. Maintenance crews quickly turned aircraft and weapons systems back to service; logistics specialists rigged and moved critical cargo; medical and security personnel coordinated responses that kept the flight line safe and the exercise on schedule. When problems crossed unit lines, Airmen collaborated across squadrons to restore mission continuity.
“I joined the Air Force Reserve because I wanted a challenge,” said Airman Juan Chavarro, a vehicle maintainer with the 419th Logistics Readiness Squadron, as he and his teammates battled wind and cold to erect a tent. “This exercise is giving me experience I’ll use when I deploy.”
Exercise observers documented lessons learned, recorded best practices and identified training shortfalls. Commanders will use those findings to refine tactics, techniques and procedures and to prioritize follow-on training, so strengths are preserved, and gaps are closed.
Reserve Airmen maintain the same readiness standards and capabilities as their active-duty counterparts. Serving one weekend a month and two weeks a year, they also augment active forces on deployments around the globe. Griffin FLEX demonstrated the 419th’s ability to mobilize, integrate and fight as a ready, lethal force.
| Date Taken: | 11.21.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 11.21.2025 10:19 |
| Story ID: | 552036 |
| Location: | UTAH, US |
| Web Views: | 9 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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