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| Firefighter Lt. Jason Dukes, a training lieutenant with the 169th Civil Engineer Squadron, secures the cockpit of an F-16 Fighting Falcon during the Major Aircraft Recovery Exercise (MARE) May 6, 2015, at McEntire Joint National Guard Base, S.C. The MARE exercise was a base-wide training simulation to determine how McEntire would respond to an aircraft crash. (U.S. National Guard photo by Amn Megan Floyd/Released) |
This is the scenario that personnel from
various base maintenance shops and support agencies participated in as a
simulated Major Aircraft Recovery Exercise (MARE), May 6 here.
“We exercise
all elements of the scenario so that if we have a real-world incident we know
how to execute our procedures and guidelines as well as maintain our
proficiency,” said Maj. Alvin McConkey, the director of Inspections for the
169th Fighter Wing. “We like to exercise the base as a whole to ensure we get
the flow correct.”
This was
part of a routine inspection to observe how the base would follow set
procedures and mitigate any obstacles that can be caused by the uncertainty and
unpredictability of a real world scenario. Using a static F-16 Fighting Falcon
with a simulated nose gear collapse, personnel and first responders received an
opportunity to get hands-on experience and learn what it may feel like to
actually be on scene.
“It helps
people wrap their head around what we’re actually doing,” said Master Sgt.
Bronson Priebe, the Crash Damaged Disabled Aircraft Recovery (CDDAR) team chief
with the 169th Maintenance Squadron. “It gives our team situational awareness,
hands-on experience and it builds their confidence level.”
The CDDAR
team‘s responsibility is to move the damaged aircraft from the scene with as
little secondary damage as possible.
“We don’t
want to cause any more damage to the airplane,” said Priebe. “That aircraft can
easily be repaired and returned to service, but if we were to do something
wrong, the aircraft may never be flyable again, and then we’ve lost an asset.”
McEntire
firefighters were on scene as well. Wearing full proximity suits, they made
sure that the aircraft was secure and safe enough to transport.
“Training is
always good,” said civilian firefighter Capt. Anthony Downs, the station
captain with the 169th Civil Engineer Squadron. “We fight the way we practice,
we save lives the way we practice. If we can do it right here, we can do it
right in the real world.”
Another MARE
has been scheduled for July.
