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Security forces hold field training exercise in Florida

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Samuel King Jr.
  • 919th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs
DUKE FIELD, Fla. --  Duke Field's 919th Security Forces Squadron held a field training exercise at Eglin's Field 5 during the March 6-7 unit training assembly.

The FTX scenarios consisted of self-aid and buddy care, tent building, force-on-force movements, land navigation and prisoner searches. Twenty Airmen were split into four- to five-person squads and worked together to complete timed objectives.

"This (FTX) was to prepare and equip our Airmen with the skills they need to be ready for real-world contingencies," said Lt. Col. Christopher Simpson, 919th SFS commander. "These skills are still required in the combat environment, and the more these procedures are exercised the easier it will be for Airmen to recall them if a situation arises.

"Many of our Airmen have experience with these skill sets, with their job, active-duty or deployments," Colonel Simpson said. "But we also have new reservists just coming into the squadron, who have to know these real-world applications within our small training window."

Clear skies and cool temperatures made for an optimal training day deep in the forest of the Eglin range.

Force-on-force training had squads advancing along a clearing and taking fire from an enemy position. The squad had to maneuver around to take out the enemy and secure the position while avoiding battlefield clues like improvised explosive device markers and decoy positions.

During land navigation, a squad had to plot a course on a map to an objective, then follow it through a dense forest area while maintaining combat awareness.

The scenarios forced the squad members to work as a team and analyze how best to complete the scenario. The prisoner search had step-by-step protocols so nothing is missed.

Security forces need to practice these processes often, so they become second nature and those steps need to be followed to avoid bad habits and short cuts. A forgotten step or missed detail can put Airmen in danger.

The tents built during the scenarios were the shelters for the night for the squadron members. While the Air Force Hennessy team visited the 919th dining facility, SFS Airmen received meals-ready-to-eat to maintain the FTX's austere, bare-base combat environment. (Air Force Reserve Command News Service)