Photo By Tech. Sgt. Vincent Lang | U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt Bianca Finder, Operations Manager, 126th Civil Engineer...... read more read more
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan - When enlisting, National Guardsmen commit to a minimum training standards of 39 days a year. Fifteen of those days’ members of the Illinois Air National Guard, 126th Civil Engineer Squadron, 126th Air Refueling Wing assigned to Scott Air Force Base, Illinois traveled to Yokota Air Base, Japan.
The 33 service members from the 126th CES were there to complete training alongside the 374th CES.
“Our goal going into this tour was for our members to complete career field education and training plan tasks,” said Antuan McClenton, 126th CES, Yokota deployment for training, Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge.
National Guard units and each active-duty military base have different support roles and different equipment that it utilizes to full fill its mission.
“Generally, to complete all upgrade training our members will need to complete a full deployment as there are a lot of tasks that we don’t have the equipment to complete at the 126th,” said McClenton,
Many times, annual training for Airmen is completed stateside at their assigned home station.
"There's an application process and a lot of planning that happens for an international Deployment for Training," said 2nd Lt. Ethan Taylor, the National Guard Bureau/A4 CES durational Officer in Charge who coordinated the unit's reception. "The 126th CES had to apply and be selected months in advance."
The squadron is made up of nine specialty areas; Water and Fuel Systems Maintenance (WFMS), Structures, Electrical Systems, Heat Ventilation and Air Conditioning, Emergency Management, Power Production, Engineering Assistants, Pavements and Construction Equipment Specialist, and Operations each with a unique focus that when combined has the capability to take raw land and can transform it into an Air Base ready to support contingency operations anytime, anywhere.
While in Japan, the 126th assisted the 374th Civil Engineer Squadron with completing scheduled maintenance, and infrastructure improvement projects including replacement of entry control point tire shredders, installing energy efficient heating ventilation and air conditioning systems, and mapping the Tama Hills recreation area.
The 126th CES also helped the 374th setup for the 50th annual Japanese-American Friendship Festival, running 7,000 feet of electrical cable and 1,200 receptacle drops.
This two-day festival hosted approximately 226,000 visitors.
“The festival allows Yokota to connect with the local community and their efforts helped ensure festival success,” said Tech. Sgt. Scott Trainer, 374th CES, deployment for training coordinator.
“WFSM serviced the water filtration system that supplies the base, there were a lot of smaller projects for all sections and 126th Emergency Management got a lot of training with the 374th EM shop,” said McClenton
Beyond infrastructure repair, the deployment placed a heavy emphasis on partner-nation interoperability. The Yokota experience allowed troops the opportunity to work alongside U.S. Military, U.S. Civilians, Local Nationals and members of the Japan Ground Self Defense Force.
“As members of the Air National Guard, joint training opportunities with our active-duty counterparts and international allies is incredibly valuable,” said Senior Master Sgt. Zachary Heintzelman, flight superintendent, 126th Emergency Management.
The 126th CES Emergency Management flight conducted a joint readiness exercise with the 374th CES and the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) 1st Nuclear, Biological, Chemical Unit. The training utilized paintball munitions to simulate a contested chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear environment while executing Tactical Combat Casualty Care.
“Working alongside the JGSDF personnel was an outstanding experience. Gaining hands-on experience in a high stress environment while overcoming language barriers and differing standard operating procedures strengthens our interoperability,” said Heintzelman
This opportunity was strategically designed to provide U.S. military members on-the-job training and valuable cultural experiences within an Indo-Pacific ally nation.
“Overall, the experience working with the 126th has been positive,” said Staff Sgt. Gema Vaglienty-De La Luz, 374th CES, operations manager. “The guard brings a new lens, it’s interesting to see how the guard has two lives,” said Vaglienty-De La Luz.
“We are always thankful for the guard units when they come out to give us a hand with real world situations,” said Tech. Sgt. Jospeh Fortaliza, section chief, 374th Electrical Systems. “It’s always good to have more hands to help us maintain the base as the infrastructure is old. It’s always great to see our local nationals willing to accept them,”
"With only two weeks and integrate on day one, by no means is this a small task," said Lt. Col. Matthew Forney, 374th CES, commander.
It’s a lot of balancing between maintaining the base and meeting training requirements, still the 126th packed in a wide range of training inclusive of technical tasks, tactical combat casualty care; chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear challenged environment warfare training and cultural collaborations.
“Beyond the training itself, sharing stories, photos of our families and pieces of our everyday lives, builds lasting relationships. Those personal connections strengthen not only our friendship, but also the trust and partnership that make us more effective together,” said Heintzelman
The DFT directly benefited the Yokota Air Base populace of 19,600, generated over 3,300 duty hours of skilled labor and saved the host installation an estimated $250,000 in contractor expenses.
The 126th Air Refueling Wing aims to be the best tanker wing in the Air National Guard and that precision air power is enabled by the often not seen 126th Civil Engineer Squadron. No matter the need, the 126th CES stands ready to build or maintain the facilities and grounds to support contingency operations at anytime, anywhere in the world.
"This deployment shows exactly what the Air National Guard brings to the fight," said Lt. Col. Matthew Boice, 126th CES, commander. "Getting out of our standard drill-weekend routine to execute hands-on, real-world work alongside our active-duty and Japanese partners is how we build true readiness. I couldn't be prouder of how our team integrated and proved that when the 126th shows up, we are ready to execute from day one."
| Date Taken: | 06.06.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 06.15.2026 17:39 |
| Story ID: | 567809 |
| Location: | YOKOTA AIR BASE, JP |
| Web Views: | 11 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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