Operational Readiness Exercise tests wing’s ability to perform homeland-defense mission

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Diane Stinnett
  • 123rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
VOLK FIELD, Wis. --  The 123rd Airlift Wing deployed more than 290 Airmen and four C-130 aircraft here June 19 for an Operational Readiness Exercise that marks a new era in higher-headquarters inspections.

The six-day exercise was designed to prepare the wing for an upcoming Operational Readiness Inspection to be conducted by the Air Mobility Command Inspector General next May. As such, it tested the unit’s ability to deploy to remote sites and operate in hostile environments, said Col. Greg Nelson, commander of the 123rd Airlift Wing.

In this respect, it was not much different from scores of OREs that have come before it.

But this year’s exercise diverged substantially from those of the past in one crucial way: The scenario centered around homeland defense, rather than an enemy attack while deployed overseas.

For the first time ever, next year’s ORI will do the same.

Typical OREs and ORIs are built upon a simulated deployment to South Korea, during which mobilized units must fend off the assaults of hostile forces.

In contrast, the homeland-defense scenario calls for an Air Guard unit to respond to a natural disaster by providing assistance to civil authorities at home. The participating unit is then hit with an enemy attack, either from a terrorist group or other rogue elements operating within the United States.

The shift is a fundamental one, based in part on new roles the National Guard assumed as it transitioned from a strategic reserve to a front-line operational force following 9/11, Colonel Nelson said. These new roles mean the National Guard is now the primary military organization responsible for homeland defense, whether it be response to natural disaster or enemy attack.

In light of these changes, it makes perfect sense for the wing’s next ORI to test the kinds of capabilities the Kentucky Air Guard will be called upon to deliver in the event of an enemy attack on U.S. soil or the occurrence of natural disasters like hurricanes, floods and tornados.

Nelson noted that the idea for this new approach originated in Kentucky, where local Guard officials are keen to demonstrate the 123rd Airlift Wing’s homeland defense capabilities. The revised scenario was approved by Air Mobility Command officials, he said, because it mirrors the wing’s potential real-world taskings so well.

“We’re stepping forward to do this because we believe homeland defense and homeland security are primary missions of the National Guard,” Colonel Nelson said.

“That’s especially true of the Kentucky Air National Guard because of the capabilities that we house within the 123rd Airlift Wing. Those include C-130 airlift, special tactics search-and-rescue, explosive ordnance disposal, expeditionary medical services and the 123rd Contingency Response Group,” whose mission is to establish new airfields in austere environments.

“These capabilities allow us to respond to any natural disaster or enemy attack on the United States, open up an air hub, and provide search-and-rescue and medical assets as part of one coordinated effort.”

The June ORE was the first of two fly-away exercises the 123rd will be completing in preparation for the 2010 ORI. While deployed to Volk Field, Kentucky Guardsmen received training in such areas as self-aid and buddy care; and chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive events.

The deployment culminated with a two-day mock war that included simulated ground and chemical attacks. Members of the wing’s 123rd Contingency Response Group also airlifted a National Guard Civil Support Team from Iowa to Kansas as part of the ORE.

The teams’ mission was to assist local first-responders in determining the nature of an attack, provide medical and technical advice, and pave the way for the identification and arrival of follow-on state and federal military response assets.