Moody Airmen attend Silver Flag deployment training

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Leticia Hopkins
  • 347th Rescue Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Forty-two Airmen from the 347th Civil Engineer Squadron left Feb. 11 to attend Silver Flag training at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla.

Moody’s Airmen joined Airmen from around the Air Force to conduct five-and-a-half days of contingency training.

“Our mission statement is (to) provide contingency training free from home station constraints,” said Senior Master Sgt. Rodger Brown, chief of operations, Detachment 1, 823rd RED HORSE Squadron. “It’s where expeditionary combat support teams can train, interact and complete contingency operations in a realistic, integrated environment for rapid deployment. Anytime… anywhere.”

In order to accomplish the training’s goals, the Airmen first worked within their Air Force Specialty Code groups for three-and-a-half days before combining to complete a team exercise.

AFSCs involved in the training included all CE specialties, services, Personnel Support for Contingency Operations, manpower, finance, contracting, first sergeants and communications.

As a Silver Flag first-time student, Airman 1st Class Margaret McGrane, 347th CES Readiness Logistics apprentice, said she found the training very useful.

“It is important, especially here at the home station because we only practice our peacetime job,” said Airman McGrane. “By going to Silver Flag, we get to practice our wartime job and everything we read in our career development courses.”

During the first part of the training, the students attended classes but spent the majority of their time outside training with their equipment.

The second part of the training brought the Airmen together for real-world training scenario.

“We got to work with people from other bases who brought different ideas,” said Airman McGrane. “We worked pretty smooth together.”

These teamwork skills were required to complete the deployment scenario.

“The scenario included deploying to an overseas base with little or no host nation (support),” said Sergeant Brown.

The scenario required students to set up their own facilities and equipment, including everything from living quarters to repairing and making the runway usable again.
Class instructors actually blow craters into the runway for the students to repair, said Sergeant Brown.

Not only did they have to repair the runway, they were also responsible for the lighting, marking, paint striping and foreign object damage covers for the craters and a mobile aircraft arresting system.

Another part of the scenario required the Airmen to respond to a chemical attack, said Airman McGrane. This type of scenario is always a possibility when the Airmen deploy.

“We are constantly updating our training to reflect lessons learned in our area of responsibility,” said Sergeant Brown. “We try to focus on the initial stages of a beddown with some sustainment, and it has proved its worth in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.”

In addition to the training, the students also dealt with austere living conditions, which simulated possible deployment environments. Unlike the comforts of home, the students stayed in wooden “hootches” and received four hot meals during their training. They ate meals-ready-to-eat for the rest of the time.

The students also had access to a small recreation center and weight room.

Silver Flag is required every 30 months for all active-duty CE specialties and every 45 months for the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserves.

It provides most of these Airmen their only opportunity to work with the equipment actually used during deployments, said Sergeant Brown. Silver Flag has the equipment in the Basic Expeditionary Airfield Resource kits that are used for real-world deployments.

Airman McCrane said the training definitely made her more confident about her job capabilities and with the use of equipment she previously only had knowledge of through readings.