SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany -- Airmen from the 52nd Fighter Wing received training from the 52nd Maintenance Group on F-16 Fighting Falcon launch, recovery, refueling and servicing at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, Nov. 30 through Dec. 11, 2020.
The training is part of the Air Force’s ongoing Agile Combat Employment academy designed to develop multi-capable Airmen and increase operational flexibility.
“Our class is teaching maintenance career fields how to be a crew chief,” said U.S. Air Force Tech Sgt. Bradley Pippin, 52nd MXG development and instruction element chief. “They are learning things like launch, recovery, refueling, and servicing.”
Exercising elements of ACE enables U.S. forces in Europe to operate from locations with varying levels of capacity and support, ensuring Airmen and aircrews are postured to deliver lethal combat power across the spectrum of military operations.
“This allows us to take individuals and get them trained to do multiple tasks that are typically outside of their Air Force Specialty Code, which gives us further capabilities to lower our foot print if we are called upon to go forward and execute ACE,” said U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Shawn Hyler, 52nd MXG production superintendent.
By combining an in person course as well as hands on training, the ACE course allows Airmen to become certified in other career field capabilities, giving them the opportunity to become multifunctional and versatile wherever and whenever necessary.
“Instead of sending big groups of Airmen to already established bases, this is giving us the capability to send them to remote locations anywhere in the world,” Pippin said. “They will be able to catch these aircraft, get them to do what they need to do to get them back in the air, fully serviced, armed up and ready to complete the mission.”
This training is to prepare 52nd MXG Airmen for operations in areas that lack the ground support available at Spangdahlem AB.
“Today specifically they are training on inspections so our pre-flight, it is basically our last flight of the day and the inspection after, it rolls into the following flying day,” Pippin said. “They are looking over the entire aircraft and making sure that it is good to go and ready to fly, it is fully serviced and it is ready to do its job.”
Innovative Airmen are trained and empowered to make disciplined decisions at subordinate levels, in order to meet the commander’s intent and take initiative in a contested environment.
“We adapt, overcome, and improvise- this is the way forward,” said Pippin.