MIDDLE RIVER, Md. - Airmen from the Maryland Air National Guard hosted a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear response exercise with regional partners at two Maryland National Guard training locations.
The deployment-for-training exercise enhanced emergency readiness and response in a simulated deployed environment. It took place Sept. 24-28 at the 70th Regiment Regional Training Institute, Aberdeen Proving Ground in Edgewood, and Blum Military Reservation in Glen Arm.
Thirty participants from 11 emergency management flights from the Air National Guard and Air Reserves contributed to the exercise to strengthen relationships between units within the region, including a team of Maryland Airmen from the 175th Wing.
“There was a lot of behind-the-scenes planning, coordinating and preparation that happened before we got to the smooth and fun training experience our attendees enjoyed,” said Maryland Air National Guard Senior Master Sgt. Jennifer Blood, the installation emergency manager for the 175th Wing who organized and led the exercise. “Due to the wonderful cadre team we put together and the emergency management personnel arriving with an open mind ready to train, it was a very successful week.”
In collaboration with others in the FEMA-designated Region 3 units, the exercise focused on training scenarios where Airmen could test their capabilities in unexpected deployment emergency management challenges while wearing chemical suits.
“We bring different flights from Region 3 and the surrounding area where we can come together and experience some training together in more of a localized setting,” said West Virginia Air National Guard Master Sgt. Glynn Willard, readiness and emergency management flight chief for the 130th Airlift Wing in Charleston, West Virginia, and one of the cadres for the exercise. “We go over some of our annual training that we do as well as get some hands-on time out there in the field, in a simulated, deployed environment.”
Participating teams from units in FEMA Region 3 included Air National Guardsmen from Maryland’s 175th Wing, both West Virginia’s 130th Airlift Wing and 167th Airlift Wing, D.C.’s 113th Fighter Wing, Delaware’s 166th Airlift Wing, Minnesota’s 133rd Airlift Wing, Pennsylvania’s 111th Attack Wing, 171st Air Refueling Wing and 193rd Special Operations Wing, Ohio’s 121st Air Refueling Wing and Ohio Air Force Reserve’s 910th Airlift Wing.
“Some of the training that we’ll do this week involves general Airmanship and basic Soldiering skills,” said Willard. “We’ll practice convoy operations, basic weapon handling and skills, and then we’ll use those basic skills to tie into our CBRN competencies.”
He said it is important for Airmen to know their counterparts from other states so they are not meeting for the first time during an emergency.
Teams participated in a number of training modules involving Humvee operation and convoy tactics, tactical weapons handling in presumptive identification training, sensitive site exploitation sampling, reconnaissance and biological training.
“These types of training are important for our career field because we are switching from a reactive position where we are just in the office, something has happened, the scene was cleared, and we’re sent in, to a proactive force,” said Delaware Air National Guard Tech. Sgt. Josette Santana, emergency management specialist for the 166th Airlift Wing. “We’re going to be attached to different units, different services, and we have to be able to hold our own out there in the field.”
Part of the training took place in the classroom at the 70th RTI, followed by hands-on training at Blum Military Reservation and a simulated deployment event.
“The main objective of this exercise is to become more familiar with our equipment and the changes that our job is specifically going through,” said Santana.
Those changes include moving toward a four-person team attached to another branch’s unit in a deployed environment.
“It’s important for us to get that practice so that once we’re actually down range and all these other factors are influencing what we’re doing for our mission come into play, that we kind of have a baseline as to what we need to do because we’ve practiced it before,” said Santana.