452 CES puts its "Power" on display Published Dec. 19, 2008 By Will Alexander 452nd Air Mobility Wing/Public Affairs MARCH AIR RESERVE BASE, CALIF. -- Four flights of the 452nd Civil Engineer Squadron flexed their wartime muscle before a crowd of about 50 family and friends during the squadron's biannual Power Demonstration. "We wanted to show the base and our families what we do when we deploy, how we contribute to the mission, and why they support us as well as they do," said Maj. Robert Sauer, commander, 452 CES. Members of the squadron's Engineering/Prime BEEF, Fire, EOD and Readiness flights demonstrated their capabilities for rapid runway repair, firefighting, explosive ordnance disposal, and chemical warfare operations in support of base defense and in war. "People generally understand what CE does, but this gets us out there and shows them some of the specifics in a very physical manner," said Maj. Sauer. "It's one thing just to talk about it and another thing to actually go out there and see it." Maj. Sauer said some of what CE does is fairly obvious to people - like firefighting and EOD - but other missions are not, such as rapid runway repair. "That's needed any time you have an enemy force that manages to get through our defenses and attack the base," he said. "If it damages the runway, it creates a situation where there's not enough runway to launch the mission, and then we go out and identify what the minimum it is we need to get the mission back up and operational and prioritize what's out there and go out and fix it." The demonstration took place at the Air National Guard's Regional Training Site here, which has a mock runway where CE members set up a fake crater that was created by a bomb blast. The team partially repaired the hole for observers. "A complete repair process can take anywhere from an hour to a couple of hours, depending on the hole," said Maj. Sauer. The 452 CES puts on the Power Demonstration every two years during the December UTA, and in conjunction with the squadron's Christmas party and its blues inspection, Maj. Sauer said. "We're the first in, and the last out," said Capt. David Simons, section commander, 452 CES. "These careers are vital, due to the jobs they uphold and keeping us safe." Senior Airman Kara McGrath contributed to this report.