ESKAN VILLAGE, Southwest Asia -- Defenders, explosive ordnance disposal technicians, medics and emergency management professionals of the 879th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron at Eskan Village, Southwest Asia, participated in a multi-tiered readiness exercise March 25. The training exercise featured mock improvised explosive devices and active shooters, providing first responders with realistic training.
“This training provided us a unique opportunity to blend our various functions into a cohesive team and test our unit’s readiness,” said Capt. Levi Beard, 879 ESFS Mission Support Flight commander. “The ability to exercise local tactics simultaneously with command and control allowed us to hone in on areas to improve, increasing our capabilities.”
The exercise scenario required security forces Airmen to engage multiple active shooters while carefully avoiding victims and bystanders. Defenders were also challenged to recognize people within a crowd who had suicide vests, identify IEDs and complete casualty evacuations.
Master Sgt. Ronnie Wright, an individual duty medical technician deployed from Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, oversaw the casualty evacuation and care of mock victims during the exercise.
“The medical piece is usually an afterthought to most until you actually need a medic,” Wright said. “During this event, the team members had to be self-reliant and implement their combat medical training.”
Emphasis was placed on providing the best care possible to ensure survival and get victims safely evacuated to definitive care, Wright added.
First responders training together has several benefits, said Master Sgt. Matthew Stark, 879 ESFS EOD flight chief deployed from Dyess AFB, Texas.
“Integrating with other career fields gave our EOD team the opportunity to maintain valuable base defense skills in a deployed environment,” Stark said. “Focusing on wartime and peacetime preparedness, simultaneously, is a benefit here at Eskan Village.”
“This exercise was by far one the best ones I have been a part of in my 15 years,” said Master Sgt. Joe Puga, 879 ESFS flight chief deployed from Tinker AFB, Oklahoma. “It encompassed active shooter response, improvised explosive identifications, mass causalities, self-aid-and-buddy-care, EOD coordination and response, troop movements and clearing procedures under fire. This allowed our defenders to apply the training and knowledge they’ve gained throughout their careers.”
The 879 ESFS is a unique unit comprised of 24 different Air Force specialty codes. The unit has an operational mission, but also performs its own base operating support function. They are a self-supported geographically separated unit of the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing.