MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- BRRRT!
The sound of freedom continues over the skies of MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, and the surrounding Tampa Bay area, as A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft from the 163rd Fighter Squadron, Indiana Air National Guard, are flown during the Guardian Blitz II exercise Dec. 3-14, 2018.
This deployment exercise trains Total Force crewmembers on basic surface attack, combat search and rescue, close-air support and night-vision takeoff and landing.
“This is our opportunity to reconstitute the force by accomplishing training we haven’t been able to do because of the weather in Indiana,” said Lt. Col. Joshua “Deuce” Waggoner, the 163rd FS commander. “We give our guys an opportunity to learn on the job, so if they are asked to do something in a more aggressive environment, they have their knowledge to fall back on.”
The six aircraft and more than 100 crewmembers perform most of their training at the Avon Park Air Force Range. This bombing range, in combination with the resources and facilities at MacDill, provide unique capabilities for military training for different types of weaponry across the full spectrum of Air Force assets.
“Our petroleum, oil and lubricants professionals provide clean jet fuel, enabling the A-10’s to fly their combat training sorties around the clock,” said Senior Master Sgt. Jonathan Spencer, the fuels superintendent from the 6th Logistics Readiness Squadron. “Without us, pilots are pedestrians.”
Along with MacDill Airmen providing fuel, lodging, and maintenance and operations facilities, Guardian Blitz II is being facilitated by Air National Guard and Reserve units from around the Air Force ensuring the training environment accurately prepares the Joint Force for mission success.
“We are being supported by the 927th Air Refueling Wing here at MacDill, the 328th Air Refueling Squadron from Niagara Falls, New York, and the 123 Special Tactics Squadron from Louisville, Kentucky,” Waggoner added. “It’s truly an active duty, guard and reserve exercise.”
As the Air Force focuses on accomplishing the mission through sharing crews, aircraft and other resources, Total Force Integration exercises like Guardian Blitz II may become more and more common.
“If you think of the A-10 as a single entity it may not be successful, but whenever it’s part of the Total Force concept it is just as lethal as any other aircraft,” Waggoner said. “After we finish this training, we will be preparing for a similar exercise that we will be participating in February, again at MacDill.”