Photo By Senior Airman Thomas Keisler | U.S. Airmen with the 724th Air Mobility Squadron provide first aid and buddy care...... read more read more
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The 724th Air Mobility Squadron, an Air Mobility Command tenant unit at Aviano Air Base, participated in exercise Nodal Lightning May 17-21, 2021. Nodal Lightning is a readiness exercise conducted by the 521st Air Mobility Operations Wing based out of Ramstein Air Base, Germany.
This week-long exercise simulating an air and chemical attack on the 724th AMS’s warehouse and temporary operations site. In response to the attack, the team set up temporary operations on the flight line and provided medical assistance to teammates who had simulated injuries.
“The purpose of [Nodal Lightning] is to test our capabilities if we are in a degraded environment or our operations building is destroyed during an attack,” said Tech. Sgt. Eduardo Mora, 724th AMS operations flight supervisor. “We move to a remote location and still function properly and efficiently.”
U.S. Air Forces in Europe air mobility units take part in Nodal Lightning biannually, testing their ability to operate in a contested environment.
“The exercise is important because these scenarios don’t play out too often,” said Senior Airman Justin McCallister, 724th AMS air freight specialist. “For me it was a good learning experience to actually see personnel accountability report team sweeps and react to certain injections because I haven’t seen them in so long. It was a good job on the 724th AMS for getting us ready for this and I think we will succeed at future exercises now.”
The in-depth exercise featured air attacks with complications injected throughout, such as an air attack which mandated evacuation of the entire warehouse. Simulated injuries were a part of the scenario, requiring personnel to provide proper first aid while also remaining safe and secure.
While injured personnel were recovered and temporary operations were set up, the team handled any inject that came their way. With tents and undamaged equipment, the team continued the mission successfully.
Mora said it was incredible to see the player vs the evaluator side of the exercise, and how the evolution of the scenario affected how the team operated.
“I look forward to the next exercise,” said McCallister. “Any chance to actually get out in the elements - rain, sleet, or shine - I think we all look forward to. It really takes us out of the work environment we’re used to, so getting those new scenarios really tests our readiness.”
| Date Taken: | 05.21.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 05.24.2021 04:16 |
| Story ID: | 397169 |
| Location: | AVIANO, IT |
| Web Views: | 56 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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