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621st CRW, 690th RPOE turn on lights

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Brooke Brzozowske
  • 621st Contingency Response Wing Public Affairs
MACKALL ARMY AIR FIELD, N. C. --  Moonlight covers the camp, illuminating a rainbow of reflective belts. In the wee hours of the morning, the smell of coffee, extra sugar, damp grass and the mighty roar of C-130 Hercules and C-17 Globemaster IIIs accompany the steady beep of a forklift. Meanwhile, Airmen and Soldiers set up camp, opening an airbase at a simulated deployed environment.

"We've got another bird coming in, four mikes away, and a two-ship five mikes later," calmly relays Maj. Ron Nolte, Contingency Response Element commander over his radio as he walks out of the joint operations center tent. "It's going to be a busy night."

This scene played out at Mackall Army Airfield near Pinehurst, N.C., as part of the Joint Operational Access Exercise, held here Sep. 7 through 13.

The purpose of JOAX is to assess and certify the combat readiness of Air Force and Army leadership, planning staff, airlift crews and combat forces to accomplish their employment and sustainment mission in an expeditionary setting.

"JOAX is like a symphony of Mobility Air Forces - carefully orchestrated with our Army brethren and their ground forces," said Maj. Dan Cook, JOAX Air Mobility Division chief and 21st Air Mobility Operations Squadron director of operations. "This is a critical, joint venture between all moving parts of this exercise, and it's been a pleasure to help conduct the air piece of this operation."

In the early stages of the exercise more than 90 Airmen from the 621st Contingency Response Wing and 50 Soldiers from the 690th Rapid Port Opening Element, Fort Eustis, V.A., arrived to a simulated intermediate staging base to establish a Joint Task Force - Port Opening.

"The JTF-PO force is ready to deploy within 12 hours of notification and when it arrives, rapidly opens a bare base operation to 'bridge the gap' for follow-on forces," said Col. David Kuenzli, 817th Contingency Response Group and JTF-PO commander. "Essentially, our team of Airmen and Soldiers turn on the lights."

The 621st Contingency Response Wing's 'Devil Raiders', known as Air Mobility Command's 9-1-1 force, partnered with their Army counterparts, the 690th RPOE 'Patriots' to provide the air and ground element of mobility operations, assuring cargo was quickly moved off the airfield and transported to forward locations for distribution.

"It doesn't matter what uniform we are wearing, each of the guys out here know what we're here to do - we all mobilize the fight and provide relief to those who need it most," said Staff Sgt. Greg Jones, 621st aerial porter. "This exercise is a great way to practice our processes and to highlight how we operate in complex environments."

The partnership enhanced joint relationships and helped sharpen skills in airfield operations, aircraft on and offload, airbase defense and establishing a distribution node for cargo and supplies.

"It takes a sharp team to work this well together in a joint environment, and our team worked 13 aircraft loading, off-loading and pushed forward more than 99 tons of passengers and cargo," said Maj. Armando Kuppinger, JTF-PO Surface Element leader and 690th RPOE commander.

"Bottom line, our guys showed up ready to execute the mission. This is an incredible capability - and one that only our fine nation possesses," he ended.