GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. -- Airmen of the 434th Air Refueling Wing participated in Hoosier Dawn, a Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive training exercise, at Grissom Air Reserve Base, Indiana, April 24-27.
Over the course of the four-day exercise, Airmen performed their job functions in Mission Oriented Protective Posture gear, while responding to simulated threats of enemy attacks.
During a period of MOPP 4, which consists of the J-list suit, rubber boots, rubber gloves, and gas mask, Airmen with the 49th Aerial Port Squadron simulated downloading cargo from an aircraft using a 10-K AT forklift. Senior Airman William McAleenan, 49th APS air transportation specialist, was excited to get the experience of operating that piece of machinery in MOPP4.
“That was my first experience doing that, so that was new and enjoyable,” said McAleenan. “It really wasn’t that bad. I was kind of surprised by that. When you have a good spotter that makes it super helpful.”
The 49th APS has been working diligently since a CBRNE training event back in January, to hone their capabilities of operating in a contested environment.
“We’ve been practicing for this a little every UTA weekend,” said McAleenan. “You just have to have fun. It’s just four days it’s not forever.”
Chief Master Sgt. Troy Bell, quality assurance superintendent for the 434th Maintenance Group was on the wing inspection team for the exercise, observing and taking notes. Some of the things the wing inspection team is looking at include how well Airmen are meeting the standards for putting on MOPP gear, performing post attack reconnaissance, and dealing with contaminated aircraft.
“Our maintainers are doing a good job with that,” Bell said. “And our PAR teams are doing a great job, finding unexploded ordinances and all the different chemical detection areas out there.”
Over the course of the exercise, Airmen had to be in their gas masks for up to two and a half hours. Airmen spent that time sheltering in place from attacks or be performing their duties to recover from an attack.
“They’ve had to be able to adapt to that, and having the mask on and doing their jobs,” said Bell. “It gives them a great opportunity to work in a contested environment. As we move forward that’s why we’re exercising and practicing this.”