Premier Exercise Creates Firsts for European Airmen

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Steven Goetsch
  • Combined Task Force Public Affairs
Einsiedlerhof Air Station, Germany --  More than 1,600 multinational servicemembers at more than a half-dozen locations throughout Europe came together to participate in U.S. European Command's annual premier exercise which concluded May 7.

But what made this year's exercise different was not its size and scope, but three "firsts" for organizations operating in Europe.

The exercise focuses on coalition integration, theatre ballistic missile defense, strategic communication and military support for stability operations. The complex exercise took over 12 months of intense planning so it could provide as realistic and effective training for the participants who were connected virtually throughout Europe.

"This European Command exercise is used to provide a training opportunity against a potential threat in as realistic a scenario as possible," said Lt. Gen. Frank Gorenc, commander of 3rd Air Force at Ramstein Air Base. The general praised the effort put into the exercise, saying the planners "created strategic and tactical challenges to overcome - real challenges that needed to be addressed."

For USEUCOM, although this exercise has been held for several years, it was the first time where the command had to deal with two crises at once. Exercise planners designed two distinct issues for the command, forcing the headquarters to provide support and guidance to two different major operations at the same time.

Another first was the selection of the Air Force to lead one of the task forces. While Air Force units have led task forces in Europe before, they have been primarily mobility missions. In this exercise, the Air Force component led stability and combat operations. To this end, General Gorenc was selected to be the task force commander, and his 3rd AF staff formed the nucleus of his task force headquarters.

But the most significant first for the exercise was the U.S. Air Force did not hold the reins as the Combined Forces Air Component Command - commonly referred to as the CFACC. Instead, that distinction went to a coalition partner - the French Air Force.

"Inclusion of the French (as the JFACC) was a high point for me," said Lt. Col. Dave Barnes, who was one of the chief planners for the exercise. He added that incorporating NATO units in key leadership roles is critical in today's battle space.

"The French played such a major role," he added. "It would behoove us to roll in as many coalition partners as possible (in exercises like this) because it will help us execute real-world missions in today's environment."

The air commander, French Lt. Gen. Gilles Desclaux, thought the exercise was a great success, but was not surprised, noting the long relationship the two militaries share.

"French and U.S. forces did an outstanding job, but we train together on a regular basis during large scale exercises like Red Flag," General Desclaux said. "Today, we proved our command and control structures can also blend together."

But that blending did not come without its own challenges for the combined team. Because the French were leading the air efforts, they brought their own command and control assets to use.

"That presented some interoperability challenges," General Gorenc said. "But the great thing about this exercise is we worked through them and accomplished the mission." He went on to say one of the main purposes of exercises like this is to map out those problems to improve future coalition operations, allowing them to be executed more effectively.

Many of those "maps" were drafted out of collaboration.

"We had challenges with the French gaining access to our portal, and the two systems didn't always 'talk' well," Knowledge Management Content Manger Maj. Russell Rutan said. "By us putting a U.S. liaison officer on the French staff, and them putting one on ours, we were able to successfully work through these problems."

Being able to jointly resolve problems were just some of the positives that resonated from the participants.

"In the end, the feedback I received was that everyone's expectations were being satisfied," General Gorenc said. "It kept them engaged, and forced them to explore and look for solutions to real-world current issues."

For many of the younger players, the exercise exposed them to the dynamics of working for a higher-level command operation.

"The thing I keep hearing from the younger guys is they didn't understand this exercise because they are only from 'a wing,'" General Gorenc stated. "This will provide them the training, and help them understand the nuances of the joint coalition environment."

French 1st Lt. Cyril Touzet, who had his first experience working with Americans during this exercise, had worked at a joint air headquarters before. However, he found working with his American counterparts was challenging, but very rewarding.

"It definitely enriched me on the professional side because of the exchange of points of view," the lieutenant said. "Decisions can be different since (how we normally operate) are, and this exercise enlarges my comprehension of a given situation."

General Desclaux stated that is what made this exercise very real.

"The threat environment changes so quickly that you have to constantly adapt, and change the way you fight."

General Gorenc summed up his thoughts recommending every Airmen, Soldier, Sailor and Marine seek out opportunities to play in exercises like this.

"It is important to gain this experience. It puts you in unique situations that force you to do your particular skill set in a coalition environment."