Photo By Airman 1st Class Kaitlyn Brewer | U.S. Air National Guardsmen from Maine, Connecticut and New Hampshire Civil Engineer...... read more read more
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Sixty Four Air National Guardsmen from Maine, Connecticut and New Hampshire performed live-fire aircraft burn training March 19.
The training is part of the required annual training for Air Force firefighters. It provides Airmen the opportunity to gain experience putting out fires in a structure they are not used to, as well as build comradery between squadrons and prepare teams for deployments.
Guard members are allotted two days per month, and in some cases two weeks per year of training time. Six years ago, the program was created for members of the Air National Guard in the six New England states, to simulate a real deployment, accomplishing all their annual Air Force training in one week. It also allows Airmen to have time to accomplish other training with their normal wing, maintaining combat readiness.
“We come down here for a week, knock out our training and learn from firefighters at different bases,” said Senior Airman Daniel Warner, 101st Civil Engineer Squadron firefighter. “It’s important to train with aircraft since we don’t have anything like this to practice on up North; it’s nice to be able to come down and touch up our skills.”
Members ordinarily train once throughout the year at the Savannah, Georgia Air National Guard Base. Each year one of the six states plans the training for all the states, rotating annually.
This year Maine was the designated state to organize all three units to come together and train. Once they arrived in Savannah, Georgia, they were informed the burn pit was not functioning. This allowed them the opportunity to train in a new environment with Team Shaw fire truck engines.
Live fire training is very difficult for members to get because of the snow and lack of availability, so with the help of Team Shaw the units were able to get key training accomplished, said Chief Master Sgt. Robert Cross, 103rd Airlift Wing installation fire chief.
“Firefighters need to be able to work as a team,” said Cross. “What this allows us to do is build comradery and allow us senior non-commissioned officers to train auto-education techniques, like high and low angle rescue while also accomplishing the live fire training that is very hard for us to get up in the North.”
The training allows Airmen to practice total force training, meaning active duty, guard and reservists work as if they were deployed.
“It allows us to look at our programs and see how we train and fight together,” said Cross. “We may see that one state has a better way of attacking a fire, so we are able to learn from that, incorporate it and improve on our programs.”
Cross said he thanks Shaw for supporting their missions and allowing them to keep the mission going because, without this specific training, the overall week long training would not have been as productive or meaningful for the Airmen.
| Date Taken: | 04.12.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 04.12.2019 13:38 |
| Story ID: | 317934 |
| Location: | SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, SOUTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 123 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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