Train like you fight: Combat Archer challenges Airmen with real-world scenarios

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Jaimi L. Upthegrove
  • 482nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office
HOMESTEAD AIR RESERVE BASE, Fla. --  Working with live ammunitions, roughly 200 Airmen were put to the test in real-world scenarios during Combat Archer Jan. 26 to Feb. 6.

Members of the 482nd Fighter Wing ventured to the 53rd Weapons Evaluations Group at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, for real-world deployment training.

The evaluation included F-15 Strike Eagles from the 366th Fighter Wing at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, and F-22 Raptors from the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron at Nellis AFB, Nevada with Homestead's F-16 Makos.

Capt. Joseph Valdez, an active duty pilot with Detachment 93, 495th Fighter Group here, said the training was intense and provided an opportunity for Airmen to practice things that can't be replicated at home station.

"The evaluation was very successful," said Valdez. "It not only gave first-time shooters experience in firing live missiles, but the air-to-air training with the Strike Eagles was also very beneficial."

During the training, the Airmen's abilities were put to the test and evaluated on preparing, loading, and firing the weapons systems in real-world conditions.

"There's an extensive amount of communication and rules that you have to know in order to safely and expeditiously execute the missile shoot. When there's the potential to shoot down one of your friends, you have to be on your A-Game," said Valdez. "We also had the opportunity to engage in large force exercises with F-22s and F-15Es where we were defending a point against other F-16s, F-15Es and T-38s. It was very high quality training."

The evaluation provided real-world training from the ground up, challenging the maintenance and munitions personnel with new opportunities and situations.

Staff Sgt. Robert Mastrangelo, a conventional munition crew chief with Det. 93, 495th FG, said this training was his first true leadership opportunity. He supervised a team of nine Airmen loading about 4,000 countermeasures, or chaff, and 10,000 20-millimeter rounds of ammunition onto the jets.

"Using live ammunition to practice for real-world missions was a lot more intense and serious than normal, but excellent training," said Mastrangelo, who was identified as a superior performer for his leadership during the exercise.

As with many exercise scenarios, the Airmen were presented with challenges.

"We worked to troubleshoot many mechanical issues in order to get equipment and personnel up to the exercise," said Tech. Sgt. Montague Hebert, 482nd Maintenance Squadron jet propulsion technician. "The space was limited, resources were tight and the mornings were cold. It might sound like a recipe for a hard time, but we all came together as a team and out of the 220 inspections on the maintenance side, it was reported that we as a maintenance group averaged a 97 percent."

Hebert said it was tough, but it reinforced his sense of Mako pride.

The 53rd WEG's 83rd Fighter Weapons Squadron puts together approximately 38 air-to-air weapons system evaluation deployments annually, according to their factsheet. Valdez said the program instills individual confidence and trust in the weapons system.

"This training provides realistic scenarios so pilots and maintainers can be more familiar with what to expect in a combat situation. As a result, they're far more effective in combat," said Col. Michael Hernandez, 482nd Fighter Wing vice commander. "The Air Force's decision to continue funding Combat Archer shows its commitment to providing quality training programs that expose our Airmen to critical training."

As a wing, the 482nd is a fully combat-ready unit capable of providing F-16C multi-purpose fighter aircraft, along with mission ready pilots and support personnel, for short-notice worldwide deployment. Combat Archer is just one exercise that hones Airmen's skills to be able to achieve their mission in a deployed location.