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National Guard Units Bolster Air to Ground Integration During Saber Strike
Story by 1st Lt. Holly Elkin Rockow, Minnesota National Guard
TAPA, Estonia--Saber Strike 16, this year’s iteration of a long-standing U.S. Army Europe-led cooperative training exercise, brought together 14 NATO Allies and regional partners to train alongside one another and enhance the relationships that are essential to successful future operations. Integration of air and ground operations is a major point of emphasis in the exercise.
“Effectively coordinating ground forces with air forces while working hand-in-hand with our NATO Allies and regional partners ensures our success,” said Brig. Gen. Jeffrey P. Kramer, 29th Infantry Division Deputy Commanding General, Maryland National Guard. “Saber Strike highlights how we can integrate U.S. close-air support with Allied and partner nation ground forces to contribute to regional and global stability.”
Close coordination and shared understanding between those operating on the ground and those supporting in the air could mean winning or losing in a combined arms fight. Mitigating risks and anticipating challenges that arise when the U.S. air forces work with multinational ground forces requires careful planning and collaboration by experienced warfighters.
“Sequencing Army aviation with fast-moving Air Force and artillery is very complex even for U.S. forces to execute alone,” said Kramer, who served as deputy exercise director for Saber Strike 16. “But then you bring in NATO Allies and you have additional challenges.”
Kramer added that a training environment that provides the opportunity to work through these challenges is why exercises like Saber Strike are so crucial in ensuring air-to-ground integration is seamless in a joint operating environment.
Army and Air National Guard units from multiple states have brought many key assets and capabilities to U.S. Army Europe units to enhance capabilities and bolster the total force. The National Guard also plays a key role in establishing and strengthening relationships with key partners across Europe.
Airmen from the Idaho National Guard’s 124th Air Support Operations Squadron are frequently integrated into the Minnesota National Guard’s 34th Infantry Division headquarters, which served as higher control element, or HICON, for Saber Strike 16 in Estonia. An Air Liaison Officer with the division headquarters enhances the effectiveness of all joint forces by simplifying the communication between aircraft and units on the ground.
“Our job is to make it easy,” said Lt. Col. Sean Cook, Air Liaison Officer with the 124th Air Support Operations Squadron. “Our aircraft are very complex, highly flexible artillery pieces. We’re just another howitzer. We can hit multiple targets and we have far greater range—providing different effects all with one aircraft.”
U.S. Air Force Joint Terminal Attack Controllers, known as JTACs, provide direction for combat aircraft during close air support and offensive operations. They have the ability to call in airstrikes and gun runs to provide support for ground troops in hostile environments.
“We are facilitating air power to the Army to simplify their ability to employ what we have,” said 2nd Lt. Luke Nelson, JTAC from the 124th ASOS. “And then as far as control goes, that’s where having a JTAC at the division level is critical; and if they need the division controlling, I provide terminal guidance to the aircraft.”
During Saber Strike 16, four A-10 Thunderbolt II strike fighters from the 127th Wing, Michigan National Guard, demonstrated the ability to provide close air support and, in a culminating event, conducted numerous austere landings and takeoffs on a strip of highway in Estonia.
“We practice landing in austere locations,” said Brig. Gen. John D. Slocum, commander of the 127th Wing. “It gives us the ability to disperse from main airfields. It gives us the ability to work closer with the ground troops and support infrastructure that we have available in different countries.”
The close integration between air assets and ground assets facilitated at the division level, which was carefully rehearsed and executed in exercise Saber Strike 16, enhances the ability for NATO Allies and partner nations to come together to conduct dynamic training that will improve multinational forces’ effectiveness in any potential future operation.
| Date Taken: | 06.21.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 06.23.2016 11:47 |
| Story ID: | 201975 |
| Location: | TAPA, EE |
| Web Views: | 133 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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