Florida reservists sharpen combat skills in Michigan

by Capt. Joe Simms
927th Air Refueling Wing

5/12/2014 - ALPENA, Mich. -- Air Force Reservists assigned to the 927th Mission Support Group, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, participated in a four-day training event at the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, Michigan, May 5-8.

The 50 member team received valuable training on mission essential tasks, combat and emergency survival skills including indirect fire responses, small arms tactics, convoy survival tactics and their ability to survive and operate in a chemical environment.

"Our evaluators were directed to provide instruction, not a pass or fail grade," said Colonel Dennis Seymour, 927th Mission Support Group commander. "The purpose of this exercise was not to inspect our Airmen, but to prepare them for future inspections and operations in a deployed environment."

The training deployment also provided an opportunity for members from other squadrons to work together and fostered a spirit of cooperation in an environment outside of the normal day-to-day operations at home station.

Long gone are the days when entire groups would deploy together in support of an operation. The Air Force's current operations tempo usually requires a small number of personnel from a squadron to be deployed at the same time and rarely to the same location.

With this in mind, the MSG leadership combined supply technicians with vehicle operators and set up communications specialist with personnelists and services personnel in the same work center.

"My goal for this week was to accomplish two things, build unit cohesion and provide training scenarios for these Airmen taken from real events our people have seen when deployed," Seymour said.

The training exercise began with two days of classroom instruction on subjects such as weapons familiarization and the proper responses to a bomb threat or a chemical attack. Following the classroom instruction, these reservists put what they learned into action over two days of scenarios including insurgent attacks and operating in an environment following a nuclear, biological, or chemical attack.

One training exercise involved six vehicle operators from the 927th Logistics Readiness Squadron and two supply technicians to perform convoy operations through the trails and perimeter road surrounding the base. The scenario required this three vehicle convoy to locate a supply of food and water and deliver it to a village while navigating through roadside improvised explosive devices and small arms fire along the way.

"This was the most realistic convoy training scenario I've ever been a part of and great training for what we can expect down range," said Senior Airman Stacy Schumpert, one of the drivers participating in the convoy exercise.

In addition to the convoy scenario, the vehicle operators were given an opportunity to drive through standing water and over rough terrain not ordinarily found in Central Florida.

"We never know when we will be called to bring supplies to a hospital or a shelter if the Tampa area is hit with a hurricane so our Airmen need to be prepared," said Master Sergeant Dan Prill, 927th LRS training NCO in charge. "I wanted all of our drivers to be out of their comfort zone because if the call comes in following a natural disaster we will need these skills to reach the affected areas."

The exercise concluded with three training scenarios orchestrated by 927th Security Forces member and veteran of three deployments in Iraq, Tech Sergeant Jason Knepper.

The scenario called for a group of personnel, armed with M-4s and paint cartridges, to enter a makeshift village to deliver supplies to the town elder. Once everyone was in the village insurgents would attack from all angles requiring these reservists navigate through the urban warfare scenario.

"Col Seymour asked me to create a stressful situation to see how they responded and that's exactly what we did," Knepper said. "The key to getting out of a scenario like this is to shoot, move, and communicate."

"Sergeant Knepper and our security forces team provided all of us with a huge gift," Prill said. "Anyone who has been on a deployment and spent time "outside the wire" will tell you this is the best and most realistic training for what you can expect."