341st Operations Group brings hardware to Malmstrom

Published Nov. 17, 2011
By Airman 1st Class Katrina Heikkinen
341st Missile Wing Public Affairs Office

MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. -- Team Malmstrom Global Strike Challenge competitors didn't bring home the Blanchard Trophy, but what they did bring back was pride, lessons learned and three major awards.

The 341st Missile Wing was awarded the Klotz Trophy for best ICBM operations; the 40th Helicopter Squadron was named the best helicopter search and rescue crew; and the 490th Missile Squadron was awarded the McMahon Trophy for best weapon system operations, during a score posting at Barksdale Air Force Base, La., Nov. 9.

"Of the 4,400 points available, Team Malmstrom was 57 points away from taking home the Blanchard," said Col. H.B. Brual, 341st Missile Wing commander. "That's how close this competition was."

Col. Edward Rimback, 341st OG commander, was extremely proud of the ICBM and Helo teams that represented Malmstrom.

"There is excellence in every part of this team," Rimback said. "We didn't do as well last year, and this year, they [ICBM crews] were within 10 points of each other and the same goes for the helicopters - they were within one or two points of winning every single event, and that shows how hard they worked."

The 341st Security Forces Group may have not brought back any hardware, but they placed second in overall firing, third in the mental and physical challenge and second in tactics, for an overall 2nd place finish.

"This team [defenders] was built for speed," Brual said. "They completed the MAP challenge with the fastest time, which consisted of pushing a 600-ton humvee for 500 yards, a low-crawl walk/run and a firing challenge."

Other honorable mentions include the performance by the maintainers.

"They [maintainers] worked outside of their comfort zone, trained very hard and went into the competition at their peak of readiness," said Col. David Bliesner, 341st Maintenance Group commander. "They gave their absolute best performance. I'm very proud of what they were able to accomplish in task areas that were very unfamiliar to them, and we take back a lot of lessons learned from this year to help us improve next year."

Those tactics and lessons learned by all members of Malmstrom's GSC team are sure to set high hopes for the 2012 challenge.

"We received one third of the ICBM trophies and that is the launching point for the next competition," Brual added with enthusiasm. "My goal and Team Malmstrom's goal is to take all three of the big trophies, including the Blanchard, and bring it to Malmstrom Air Force Base next fall. That's what we're going to work toward."

Perhaps the greatest lesson for the Malmstrom Aces was the importance of teamwork.

"The character I make of this team was across the spectrum - there were young members, experienced and inexperienced members - but one thing they all had in common was that they never gave up - even when they thought they didn't have anything lef t- their wingman was right there picking them up and made sure they finished strong," said Chief Master Sgt. Charles Anderson, 341st Missile Wing command chief. "They worked and trained to perfection to do everything the right way, every time."