Photo By Sgt. Alejandro Lucero | U.S. Air Force Special Tactics pararescue specialists from the 352nd Special...... read more read more
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MILDENHALL, United Kingdom – Elite U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) personnel assembled at RAF Mildenhall in early May to participate in a two-week Multilateral Exercise (MLAT) designed to enhance interoperability between U.S. SOF components in support of deterrence and defense operations in Europe.
U.S. Air Force Special Tactics Airmen with 352nd Special Operations Wing, U.S. Army Green Berets assigned to 1-10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) and U.S. East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare Operators (SEALs) integrated as one cohesive force to train on crisis response activities.
“It validated that as a collective U.S. joint force element we can train, fight and execute together effectively as a cohesive fighting force within Special Operations Command Europe,” said U.S. Air Force Col. Mark McGill, commander of the 352nd Special Operations Wing, RAF Mildenhall. “Whether it be air, maritime or land components used to counter Russian aggression, respond to crises, or evacuate citizens, this exercise has refined our ability to do so.”
During the course of the two week exercise, SOF tested and trained one another on a myriad of skills necessary to respond in a crisis, such as close quarters-combat techniques, the use of extraction tools to respond and remove injured personnel trapped inside vehicles, and RAPIDS, a SOF tactic for quickly inserting and removing personnel into and out of an area.
These components of special operations often work beside, but not with each other, said the U.S. Air Force lead exercise planner. A gap that he sought to bridge in the MLAT, in hopes to get all SOF personnel in lock step.
“We didn't divide them by saying ‘this entity go and accomplish this task,’ which supports the overall execution, it was one task that they all had to come together and accomplish,” he said. “[The goal was to] really zoom in on the joint interoperability and we broke the mold with some of the scenarios by prioritizing each unit's desired learning and training objectives.”
During the scenario, special operations teams had to solve two full mission profiles and each had to utilize their own unique strengths in order to make the tight turnarounds between the two robust problem sets.
“During the exercise we were able to work closely with the SEALS and developed tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP) that strengthened both units for this specific mission set,” said a Green Beret team sergeant with 1-10 SFG (A). “These TTPs could be helpful when we enter real world scenarios, but showing that we are able to develop and then execute these joint procedures in a short turnaround builds a lot of confidence and trust between the guys.”
These joint exercises develop trust and the ability to create effective systems and plans of action that could directly help pave the way for a shared defense in Europe, said McGill.
“First we wanted to create a template to make sure our joint U.S. warfighting units can operate together, then we’ll use that template to integrate with our NATO SOF allies.”
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| Date Taken: | 06.18.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 06.20.2024 05:25 |
| Story ID: | 474238 |
| Location: | MILDENHALL, GB |
| Web Views: | 186 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
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