MOFFETT AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Calif. — Members of the California Air National Guard’s 129th Rescue Wing recently traveled to Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base in Cebu, Philippines, to participate in Exercise Balikatan 25, enhancing joint interoperability in logistics and air mobility and strengthening mission readiness for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief scenarios in the Indo-Pacific region.
The Guardsmen collaborated with the Philippine Air Force to refine logistics planning and air mobility support at Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base, resulting in improved force integration and enhanced quality of life and operational efficiency for both units.
Two members of the 129th Logistics Readiness Squadron played a key role in building relationships with the Philippine Air Force. U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Kristian Dela Cruz, flight chief, and Master Sgt. Ralph Villamor, an air transportation craftsman, used their fluency in Tagalog to foster cultural sensitivity, mutual respect and trust between the teams.
“We were able to utilize our Filipino language speaking skills a lot,” Dela Cruz said. “We became the go-to people to facilitate a lot of the coordination with the Philippine Air Force.”
During the first 24 hours of the mission, Dela Cruz and Villamor used their skills to find the necessary contacts, experts and equipment needed for the wing’s mission.
Leveraging these relationships, the Guardsmen served as liaisons between the Philippine Air Force logistics and maintenance teams, ensuring timely access to fuel, lavatory services, and other essential ground support equipment.
The 129th led a two-day subject matter expert exchange training for the Philippine Air Force members in air traffic control, airfield management and air transportation operations.
“This was beneficial for the Philippine Air Force because they received direct instruction from the 129th team,” Dela Cruz said.
The 129th Guardsmen facilitated the initial familiarization of the HC-130J Combat King II aircraft with Philippine Air Force cargo, base operations, crash fire rescue and air mobility groups to compare maintenance procedures, identify best practices and enhance overall efficiency and support capabilities for the HC-130J.
The 129th Rescue Wing’s month-long participation in Exercise Balikatan successfully enhanced interoperability with the Philippine Air Force and strengthened relationships that will be vital for future joint operations and exercises in the Indo-Pacific region. The skills and knowledge shared during the exercise will contribute to improved mission readiness and a more effective response to regional challenges.
Balikatan translates to “shoulder to shoulder” and is a longstanding annual exercise between the armed forces of the Philippines and the U.S. military designed to strengthen our ironclad alliance, improve our capable combined force and demonstrate our commitment to regional security and stability.