Wing partners with FBI during exercise

  • Published
  • By Capt. Lucy Valdez
  • 4th Combat Camera Squadron
MARCH AIR RESERVE BASE, CALIF. --  Airmen and FBI personnel from around the country recently deployed to Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, in support of Patriot Hoover. The six day air mobility exercise involved multiple Air Force Reserve Command's Airlift Control Flights (ALCF), flying units, aerial port units, Puerto Rico Air and Army National Guard and FBI Rapid Deployment Teams including a logistic support unit. 

The exercise marked the first of its kind in size and organizational composition. All together, 80 FBI agents, technicians and supervisory personnel along with 27 vehicles and trailers were transported from Los Angeles, Miami, New York and Washington, D.C. to Puerto Rico. Also, 100 Airmen, their vehicles and equipment as well as approximately another 100 participants from the Puerto Rico National Guard participated in the exercise. 

Part of the operation involved establishing three forward operating locations at Andrews AFB, Maryland, Homestead ARB, Florida, and Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. 

The fast-paced training provided instructions in military support to civil agencies, equipment preparation, air deployment planning and execution, command and control, communications, interoperability, joint inspection, engine running off loads and night operations. 

"Our job in the TALCE community is to train different units who need to get places around the world by air, validate their air mobility and put them on the road in the smoothest, safest fashion," said Lt. Col. Harold Kaplan, AFRC Command and Control Functional. 

A variety of aircraft -- C-17, C-5, KC-135 and a C-130 -- and various ALCF units from the 452nd at March ARB, 433rd at Lackland AFB, 315th at Charleston AFB, 446th at McChord AFB and the 512th at Dover AFB joined in this large scale exercise. Capt. Garcia, Puerto Rico Army National Guard, said his "soldiers were happy to participate in an operation where other entities were involved." 

The FBI office, Los Angeles, has a ten year history of working with the 452nd ALCF at March. However, this is the first time the exercise was expanded to this level to involved FBI teams across the country. 

Lt. Col. Kaplan credits the leadership of the FBI and the Air Force for their efforts in making this exercise a reality. While in Aguadilla, FBI evidence recovery operations were conducted by an evidence response team, a dive team and tactical and medical components while the logistic support team set up bare base operations. 

Christopher Combs, supervisor, Special Agent in Charge of the Rapid Deployment Team in Washington D.C., shared the benefit of this type of exercise. He said "working with the Air Force has been a pleasure. It's rare for the FBI to get the opportunity to work with the TALCE and load-up on actual airframes of C-5's and C-17's, so it's been a fantastic experience. And really helps us prepare for our deployments overseas in the event of a terrorist attack."