Posted/Updated 6/12/2015
by Tech. Sgt. Matthew Hannen
621 Contingency Response Wing Public Affairs, Travis AFB CA

Road Warrior3

Photo: Senior Airman Vidarion McDaniel, a security forces airman for the 570th Global Mobility Readiness Squadron from Travis Air Force Base, Calif., waits to shoot during an attack scenario on a missile convoy while working as opposing forces against the 91st Missile Wing, assigned to Minot Air Force Base, N.D., during Operation Road Warrior at Camp Guernsey, Wyo., May 19, 2015. Operation Road Warrior, the largest security forces exercise conducted each year, is an Air Force Global Strike Command exercise held annually at Camp Guernsey, Wyo., which evaluates tactics, techniques, and procedures used to secure nuclear–capable weapons and critical intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) components during convoy operations and provided direct feedback to the three participating ICBM wings; the 91st Missile Wing, assigned to Minot AFB, N.D., 90th Missile Wing assigned to F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo., and 341st Missile Wing assigned to Malmstrom AFB, Mont.. (U.S. Air Force photos by Tech. Sgt. Matthew Hannen)

 

6/12/2015 - CAMP GUERNSEY, Wyo. -- Operation Road Warrior is an Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) exercise held annually at Camp Guernsey, Wyo., the largest security forces exercise conducted each year. For this year's exercise AFGSC asked the 570th and 571st Global Mobility Readiness Squadrons (GMRS), from Travis Air Force Base, Calif., to provide 24 Security Forces Airmen from their force protection flights to act as oppositional forces (OPFOR), April 23-May 20.

According to Staff Sgt. Samuel Saintz, course lead for Road Warrior and Convoy course with the 620th Ground Combat Training Squadron , "We wanted to bring in an outside unit (570th & 571st GMRS) here so the convoy teams from each unit can get a realistic look at the adversary they might face based on team composition and training. In the past we would do the training ourselves."

The exercise evaluated tactics, techniques, and procedures used to secure nuclear -capable weapons and critical inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) components during convoy operations and provided direct feedback to the three participating ICBM wings; the 91st Missile Wing, assigned to Minot AFB, N.D., 90th Missile Wing assigned to F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo., and 341st Missile Wing assigned to Malmstrom AFB, Mont.. The 620th GCTS, located at Camp Guernsey, provided the cadre, logistics, and all other support functions in order to host this operation.

"This is the first time they've brought in an outside agency to be the OPFOR," said Capt. Jordan Criss, the 570th GMRS force protection operations officer. "They (AFGSC) wanted to see a more realistic and unbiased oppositional force that could truly test the capabilities of our missile defenders.

"We were extremely excited to fill that role as well because it helped us hone our tactics and provided us another opportunity to train on a wide spectrum of war fighting skills like operations planning, weapons deployment, and shoot, move, and communicate tactics."

According to Senior Airman Brian Gill, a 570th GMRS force protection radio telephone operator, This has been an eye-opening experience that has made the airmen more well-rounded defenders."

"I have never been on this side of the training," Gill said. "Everybody is always trying to attack us, but it is the first time we have actually been able to come up with our own operation plan and how we are going to execute and be able to attack them. This is not something you usually get to do in your career. This a first time for me being able to be on the OPFOR side instead of the friendly blue force side, it gives you a different perspective."

"The teams (Minot AFB, Malmstrom AFB, and F.E. Warren) enjoyed having an OPFOR that were trained better than they were," Saintz said. "They got a realistic look at what they might face one day. They (570st and 571st GMRS) came here, they were all fully trained and highly motivated so it was very easy. We just gave them pretty much what we were looking for and they went out and did some reconnaissance and executed exactly the way we wanted them to."

According to Criss, The safety and security of our nation's most critical assets is a responsibility that the Air Force is charged with and continuously makes strides to improve.

"This was an outside of the box solution that started merely as a suggestion during a staff meeting and flourished into a future standard that will be used for years to come," Criss said. "Overall, this was an experience that greatly improved the capabilities across the Air Force by merging the expertise of two completely different Major Commands, (Air Mobility Command and Air Force Global Strike Command) to provide a product that directly impacted our nation's strategic ICBM deterrence."

The 620th GCTS plans on requesting support from the CRW for next year and other exercises as well.

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