Air Force enables ground force deployment to Baltics

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Allie Delury
  • 31st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
AVIANO AIR BASE, Italy --  The Air Force and the 31st Fighter Wing are playing a pivotal role in the movement of Army ground troops from Vicenza, Italy to various Baltic Nations to conduct land force assurance exercises.

The 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team will deploy approximately 600 soldiers from Aviano Air Base to Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia by April 28. The land-based training is occurring at the invitation of each government in order to foster interoperability and demonstrate U.S. commitment to their allies.

"The 31st Fighter Wing stands ready to assist our Army partners as they deploy to these various countries," said U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Jon A. Norman, 31st Fighter Wing commander. "The U.S. Air Force's forward presence in Europe allows us to work with our allies and partners to develop and improve ready air and ground forces capable of maintaining regional security."

Air Force support for the deployment of ground troops from Aviano has come from various European wings and countries, to include the use of C-130 Hercules' from Ramstein AB, Germany and C-17 Globemaster aircraft from Papa AB, Hungary.

"That's one of the reasons why the 724th Air Mobility Squadron is here: to ensure that the 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team can meet their quick response time and deployment capabilities," said U.S. Air Force Maj. David Magoc, 724th AMS director of operations. "We've been doing joint inspection of their cargo, making sure vehicles are compliant and ensuring safety of flight before loading the aircraft."

Various agencies from the 31st FW have also stepped up.

"From a personnel perspective it's been wonderful," said U.S. Army Maj. Dale Jones, Brigade S1 for the 173rd IBCT. "We've had great support from the wing's military personnel office here if soldiers getting ready to deploy have lost their ID cards or have had errors on their common access cards."

Other Air Force support elements include the use of air liaison officers and joint terminal attack controllers, who will be aligned with each of the four companies once they arrive in their respective country. Tactical air control party members act as mobile air controllers, coordinating with pilots and ground commanders to deliver airpower.

According to U.S. Air Force Capt. Peter Dowling, 2nd Air Support Operations Squadron TACP officer, this deployment differs from the typical training exercises and standard Afghanistan deployments that JTACs may be accustomed to in the European theater.

"Our mission set has really picked up," said Dowling. "Something of this magnitude and speed is pretty rare, at least with my experience. While we are focused on bringing the tactical air expertise to the fight, the joint mission of this exercise and everyone playing a role in it is huge."

Those roles are not defined by uniform or service. From Airmen working on the airlift platforms to help load Army parachute riggers, to joint service inspectors and planners working out the finer details of the exercise, the work by various agencies is crucial to ensure that the Army Soldiers are successfully deployed in a timely manner, said Dowling.

"It's really become a joint fight. There's no one service that takes on everything," he added.

The deployment of ground troops from the 173rd came nearly one week after defense leaders of the United States and Poland met to identify new areas in which their militaries can work together, including special operations, Air Force cooperation, and more exercises and training.

In March, the 31st FW deployed 12 F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 555th Fighter Squadron and approximately 200 Airmen to the Air Force Aviano Detachment in Lask AB, Poland, for off-site bilateral training events.

The wing also deployed several F-16s to Romania for Dacian Viper 2014, an exercise that took place April 10-17 to enhance interoperability and readiness through combined air operations, including air-to-air, air-to-ground and joint tactical air controller training.

"This bilateral training with our Baltic NATO partners provides an excellent opportunity to refine our tactical employment capabilities and assess interoperability," said Norman.

Likewise, the 173rd IBCT will also focus on conducting bilateral and multilateral training while deployed, and having the support of Aviano and the 31st FW prior to their arrival ensures that the ground troops are able to effectively carry out that mission once they land.

"Working together and being able to spin this up quickly is key," said Jones. "We can't get anywhere without the Air Force, bottom line."