Training like they fight -- 315th crews keep proficiency high even at war

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Wayne Capps
  • 315th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
St. Lucia --  As the war in the Middle East rages, the demands being placed on Reserve aircrew members are increasing to all time highs as they spend more time away from their families and civilian careers, but one factor stays constant--their training. 

Aircrew members flying the C-17 Globemaster III are required to go through an evaluation process at least once every 17 months. These “check rides” ensure all crewmembers keep their skill and proficiency levels high. 

The 315th Airlift Wing at Charleston AFB, S.C. is allocated 3,500 flight hours per year to conduct training, according to Lt. Col. Russ Catanach, 315th operations group deputy commander. As expected, the Global War on Terrorism has affected the amount of training time an aircrew member gets “our C-17 crew force has grown by about 10 to 15 percent since 9-11, so the number of training flight hours per crewmember has gone down,” said Colonel Catanach. “Real-world contingency operations have indeed provided a lot of valuable training as a by-product, especially in our tactical maneuvers and night-vision goggle operations.” 

Lt. Col. Bert Bailey, chief of standardization and evaluation for the 300th Airlift Squadron, sees the value of examining fellow crewmembers to ensure their skills are top-notch. During the five-day training mission, Colonel Bailey conducted an operational mission evaluation on Maj. Mike Phillips. “This is his last step in the upgrade process to aircraft commander,” said Colonel Bailey. 

Colonel Bailey evaluated Major Phillips’ overall performance including flying skills, technical skills and his overall interaction with the crew. “This will enable him to go out and command worldwide for any type of mission,” said Colonel Bailey. 

When asked how he thought the check ride was going, Major Phillips said, “It has gone really well. I couldn’t ask for a better crew.” 

The pilots on the jet were not the only ones conducting training. The loadmasters onboard had the opportunity to sharpen their skills as well. “This is a good training opportunity, especially for new loadmasters,” said Master Sgt. Shawn Delp also a reservist assigned to the 300th Airlift Squadron and the most seasoned loadmaster on the crew. “This is different training than our regular war-time mission; it gives us the chance to diversify our skills.” 

Tech. Sgt. Mike Smith, another loadmaster on the crew, agrees with Sergeant Delp about the value of these training missions. “An off-station trainer is extremely valuable to a crewmember,” said Sergeant Smith. “There is a lot of mentoring going on.” 

Technical skills and training both in peacetime and at war ensure the Air Force Reserve’s capabilities stay intact and that the future war-fighting capabilities continue to be second to none.

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