Exercise tests response

  • Published
  • By Capt. Vanessa Hillman
  • 60th AMW Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Travis simulated an in-flight emergency with a C-17 Globemaster III, carrying hazardous materials, during a major accident response exercise Tuesday, to determine the base's response if there was a real-world incident.

"This particular response was to an in-flight emergency scenario where an aircraft had to land at Travis," said Mr. Dan Johnson, 60th Air Mobility Wing exercise evaluation team chief. "The wing only gets one chance to respond appropriately if the emergency is real. When lives, vital resources and property are at stake, it has to be right."

The exercise began in the control tower with an emergency call from the crew of a C-17 from McChord Air Force Base, Wash.

After that call, information flowed freely into the command post; the aircraft had experienced a catastrophic no. 3 engine failure and the engine had caught fire and had been extinguished. The crippled aircraft was in no danger of crashing, but some of the metal shards from the engine had ripped into the skin of the C-17 injuring some of the crew members. The most hair-raising information though was that a container containing hazardous cargo had been damaged.

"This scenario met the Air Force requirement to be able to respond to a military accident with dangerous or explosive cargo on board," Mr. Johnson explained. "These materials obviously are of the utmost importance to our country and community. If hazardous materials are in transit and the vehicle carrying the materials breaks down or has an emergency, military bases can become a safe and secure location to control the circumstances."

Another aspect of the exercise was testing the security forces' response to protestors who began their demonstration at one of the installation's entry control points and then attempted to enter the installation.

"Our responsibility is to ensure the safety of not only the installation's resources, but also the people who live and work on it," said Capt. Mike Shirley, 60th Security Forces Squadron operations officer.

"Several individuals decided to exercise their right to protest something they felt we had on the installation," he said. "Security Forces provided a show of force and maintained a defensive posture until the protestors advanced and attempted to enter the installation illegally. Upon entrance to the installation, we apprehended the trespassers which caused the others to quickly disperse."

The hard work and coordination from the wing did not go unnoticed.
"I was really impressed with what I saw from Team Travis," said Col. Steve Arquiette, 60th Air Mobility Wing commander. "A lot of pride went into everyone's response during a situation that is not usually encountered here, and that's what I like to see."

"I saw a lot of take-aways we need to work on," he continued. "But that is why we exercise; to knock the rust off so that in a real-world situation we respond appropriately."