Reservists hone combat communications skills

Published Aug. 12, 2013
By Bo Joyner
HQ Air Force Reserve Command Public Affairs

ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga -- Classroom training is great, but to really get good at most jobs you have to get out in the field and get your hands dirty.

That's why 62 members of the 35th Combat Communications Squadron, Tinker Air Force Base, Okla., packed up 16 pallets of their communications gear, loaded them on to a C-5 and headed to the Lackland AFB Medina Annex in San Antonio in July.

The Air Force Reservists spent their two-week annual tour honing their skills during a squadron field training exercise.

"This mission focused on training new personnel and exercised the key elements that make the 35th a combat communications unit, from pre-deployment planning through post-deployment equipment inspections," said Chief Master Sgt. Terri Wilson, 35th CBCS superintendent.

"We were able to practice everything we would normally do during a deployment," the chief said. "We spend a lot of time teaching our people how to use all of our equipment during our unit training assemblies, but sometimes we need to pack everything up and take it out in the field to ensure we can ship it properly, set up comm effectively and return it all to homestation."

Senior Airman Ernest Washburn said he definitely benefited from the training exercise.
"In a classroom setting, we get to learn specifically how the equipment works and the different ways it can be used. In the field, we are taught how to use the equipment in real-world applications for practical use," he said.

Senior Airman Michael Allday said training in the field forces you to be more creative.
"Not having the additional supplies, resources and luxuries, in addition to the mental challenges that come from being at a different location and environment, forces technicians and leaders to think outside the box," he said. "When resources are limited, you have to be far more creative in the way the mission is accomplished."

Tech. Sgt. Robert Martin said he likes the camaraderie the field training exercise provided.
"Training in the field provides a more shared experience among the participants, unique operational challenges and mobility experience," he said.

Wilson said that while the Reservists were taking part in the exercise, they didn't get away from the classroom altogether. During the exercise, subject matter experts conducted 22 classroom training events held in a separate training tent.

She said that overall the exercise was a huge success.

"Reservists from the 35th CBCS performed the mission professionally, overcame problems with a positive attitude, maintained an extremely high morale throughout the exercise, and learned valuable skills to execute our mission," Salmon said.

The 35th CBCS is one of four Reserve combat communications squadrons each located in separate regions of the country that provide theater-deployable communications during wartime and contingency operations or humanitarian missions in austere locations.