MODERNIZATION EFFORTS ... - Air Force Network Integration Center

AIRMEN DEMONSTRATE COMBAT SKILLS
By 1st Lt. James W. Daniel
18th Communications Squadron
KAdEnA AIR BASE, Japan — Packing
bags and building pallets is second nature to
Airmen of the Theater Deployable Communications
element here. That’s why taking a
short hop to Udon Thani Air Base, Thailand,
to participate in Cope Tiger ’07, was just
another opportunity to demonstrate their
excellence.
Cope Tiger is the largest joint/combined
air combat exercise conducted in Thailand,
giving aircrews an opportunity to hone all
the skills they need for combat operations.
Members of the 18th CS TDC element
supported Thai, Singaporean, and U.S. forces
as they worked to improve readiness and
interoperability.
The TDC team provided the only communications
services for Udon Thani AB, including classified network
access for aircrews flying more than 140
sorties in the two-week exercise.
Capt. Shazad Yadali, the officer in charge
of the team, said the TDC element provided
command and control for key personnel and
operators, and enhanced the capabilities of
support personnel to enable them to complete
the mission.
“Even though most of the people on this crew
were new to TDC, they all performed exceptionally
and completed their duties as if they were seasoned
veterans,” he added.
The team set up initial phone lines, network
access and radio support to customers
at three different locations in less than 24
Airmen present toys and
clothes to Thai school
children. The items were
donated by members at
Kadena Air Base, Japan.
hours. In all, they provided 60 phone lines,
created over 100 user accounts, and ran 35
local area network drops.
Power supply could have been an issue,
but Master Sgt. Bernard Obsuna, TDC superintendent,
said, “The local power worked
as advertised. We were fortunate in that we
didn’t have any power issues . . . even routine
maintenance on the generator was accomplished
in record time.”
During the exercise, Airmen distributed clothing
and toys to a local Thai elementary school. The items
were donated by residents of Kadena AB to more than
700 Thai students. The Airmen spent the morning
playing games with the students, and
members of the Thai Air Force performed a
concert for them during a school assembly.
At the end of the exercise, awards were
given to Airmen who excelled during Cope
Tiger ‘07.
Airman 1st Class Christopher Reed, a secure comm
apprentice, earned the designation of Top Performer
— an award given to the top 2 percent of all exercise
participants. Senior Airman Joseph Reed, a tactical
radio apprentice, garnered distinction as an Outstanding
Performer — an award given to the top 5
percent.
The next challenge for the TDC Airmen
is Exercise Talisman Saber ’07, held in
Australia. Planning has already begun, and
the Airmen of the 18th Communications
Squadron will ensure the proud tradition of
“connecting
warfighters”
continues.
Members of the Theater Deployable
Communications team who spent
two weeks in Thailand for Cope Tiger.
Airman 1st Class JanMichael Abraham assembles
the USC-60 satellite terminal in Thailand.
CAMP ZAMA, Japan — The Air Force’s Fitness Program makes Airmen
strong — but Camp Zama’s Soldiers are giving Airmen a taste of
what it means to be “Army Strong.”
That’s because 46 Airmen attached to the 374th Communications
Squadron at Yokota Air Base, (but are actually stationed at Camp Zama,
an Army post here) are learning Army-style combat life saving skills.
“The Army’s Combat Life-Saving course is like the Air Force Self-
Aid/Buddy Care class hyped up on massive steroids,” said Master Sgt.
Warren Ary, the site’s satellite communications chief and recent graduate
of this one-week, 40-hour course. “I found the most physically demanding
portion of the course was making litters and carrying our wounded
comrades over rough ground for about a quarter mile. That really saps
your strength, especially when you’re in full battle gear.”
Senior Airman William Bland said the most striking difference between the Air
Force’s four-hour course and the Army’s Combat Life-Saving course is the realism. Upon
completion, Combat Life-Saving graduates are certified as Army Level-1 medical technicians.
The Water Survival Training course takes place at the installation’s
pool and is less intensive than the Combat Life-Saving course, unless, like
Tech. Sgt. Demond Chatman, you “can’t swim and hate the water!” But at
least he’ll know how “to make a float out of my shirt, so if I fall in water
that’s over my head, I know what I’ll do to stay afloat.”
Nearly half of Camp Zama’s Airmen completed the Army’s Water
Survival Training course. This class taught them how to enter deep water,
survival swim, and make floatation devices out of their BDU shirts and
pants. By far the most physically demanding of the three courses is the
Combatives Instructor Course.
Tech. Sgt. Shahid Muhammad, a prior Marine and now an Air Force SATCOM craftsman,
said, “This week of training is harder than any week of basic training I had when I
was in the Marine Corps.”
The Level-1 course teaches Soldiers and Airmen how to use choke
holds, clinches and arm bars. The instructors toughen up the students
with an exhaustive regimen of exercises, stretches and calisthenics before
any sparring begins. Later, students get an opportunity to take revenge
on their instructor by trying to subdue him while he administers defensive
punches. Upon completing the Level-1 Combatives Instructor
course, Airmen are certified as Combatives Instructors, enabling them to
train others on the techniques they learned. They’re also eligible to continue
their education in hand-to-hand fighting by attending the Army’s
two-week, Level-2 Combatives Instructor course.
Not only are these Army courses provided free-of-charge, but they
sharpen Zama’s Airmen for expeditionary service, foster pride and esprit
de corps, and form a foundation of mutual respect and team building.
— Chief Master Sgt. Allen Thomas, 374th CS
intercom✭ June 2007 C4ISR ✭Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance
Online ✭public.afca.af.mil
intercom ✭ June 2007