Travis, Army ready in case of emergency

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Amber Carter
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  The California Army National Guard 49th Military Police Brigade trained with the 821st Contingency Response Squadron and the 22nd Airlift Squadron Aug. 7 at Travis Air Force Base, California.

Eagle Walk, the two-day training exercise, involved an air mobility exercise and a ground force exercise to enhance readiness and put their training into practice.

"We must be ready to go within 12 hours of notification," said Army Master Sgt. Jerry Davis, 49th MP Brigade plans NCO in charge. "Within six hours, security elements and our tactical command post have to be ready to go. So, whether that means getting on the highway and driving to Redding, California, or boarding an aircraft at Travis to be transported somewhere else, that's what we have to be ready to do."

They jointly loaded nine Humvees and one expandable mobile command post vehicle onto a C-5M Super Galaxy to be transported and unloaded at Moffett Federal Airfield, California, as part of the exercise. The key mission of the National Guard is to provide civil support in emergencies and disasters.

"When we land today, the goal is to converge at our staging area," Davis said. "The piece of the exercise that doesn't involve air transport takes place on day two. Elements of our transportation companies are going to pick up elements of our infantry companies and take them to our consolidated training area, Camp Parks, in Dublin, California."

Eagle Walk is the second portion of a three-part exercise.

"We previously did the Eagle Crawl phase and this is Eagle Walk," said Army Maj.  Eric Sharyer, 49th MP Brigade plans officer. "Next year, the plan is to be bold and aggressive as far as the timeline. We would want to involve even more Soldiers in the next phase of the exercise."

Joint-service exercises give military branches the chance to work together toward the same goal.

"I believe joint training with Travis is critical to the readiness of the brigade and allows us to be better prepared for both of our civil support missions," Davis said. "Our mission assignments as the Homeland Response Force and California Task Force 49 both require that we are prepared to begin movement of critical assets at the six hour mark. Having a clear understanding of the air movement process, knowing each specialized area's requirements and points of contact gives us the ability to maintain a practiced proficiency with required tasks, which enhances our ability to self-validate and prepare loads properly."