28th CES performs speed training exercise

Senior Airman Dustin Snyder, 28th Civil Engineer Squadron pavements and construction heavy equipment operator, uses a front-end loader to fill a crater on a simulated runway at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., Sept. 30, 2015. The squadron held a speed training exercise designed to improve execution time as well as hone operation precision and performance standards, all while reviewing basic safety procedures. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Sadie Colbert/Released)

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Airman 1st Class Brian Frazier, 28th Civil Engineer Squadron structural journeyman, tightens a bushing to fasten a fiber glass mat to a splice at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., Sept. 30, 2015. During the exercise, Airmen connected two fiber glass mats together using a splice so the mat would be large enough to cover the simulated crater. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Sadie Colbert/Released)

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Senior Airman Thomas Goss, 28th Civil Engineer Squadron structural journeyman, and fellow Airmen spread out a fiberglass mat during a training exercise at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., Sept. 30, 2015. The fiberglass mat was approximately 60 feet by 50 feet and is used to cover a simulated crater once it had been filled and flattened. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Sadie Colbert/Released)

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Airmen 1st Class Jeremy Mitchell, left, and Cassandra Nielson, center, and Senior Airman Thomas Goss, right, 28th Civil Engineer Squadron structural journeymen, tighten bushings to fasten a fiber glass mat to a splice at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., Sept. 30, 2015. The fiberglass mat is used to cover any craters on an airfield and provides a clean and flat surface for aircraft to take off from without worry of foreign objects being sucked into the engines. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Sadie Colbert/Released)

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28th CES performs speed training exercise

Published Oct. 6, 2015
By Airman Sadie Colbert
28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs

ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. -- Airmen from the 28th Civil Engineer Squadron conducted a speed training exercise in preparation for future deployments Oct. 1.

The exercise is conducted to determine how quickly and effectively Airmen can perform mission-related tasks while under time constraints.

The goal is to improve mission execution time as well as hone operation precision and performance standards, all while reviewing basic safety procedures.

"Any exercise we do is important," said Senior Airman Justin Girbach, 28th CES pavements and construction heavy equipment operator and exercise crater-chief. "It shows what we are capable of, what we are strong in and what we need to work on."

The quarterly exercises help prepare the squadron to work as a unified group, as each person serves a distinct purpose.

"It's not just my experience," Girbach said. "It's everyone who is involved - as long as we all blend together and do what we're supposed to be doing, everything will work out just fine."

This specific exercise focused on a variety of obstacles personnel are expected to know how to handle, to include airfield damage repair, conventional attacks and mission-oriented protective posture training. These scenarios prepare Airmen for operations in a deployed location.

"It's a great experience for Airmen," said Staff Sgt. Paul Terlop, 28th CES pavements and construction heavy equipment operator. "It prepares them for down range. You never know what's going to happen. So anything you can do to prepare is [beneficial]."