Page 7 - Nellis, Creech and NTTR Bullseye 11-13-15

BULLSEYE
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104th FW supports USAFWS
By Maj. Mary Harrington
104th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. —
Our most successful life achievements
are collaborative … success is scarcely
ever the result of one effort. Together, we
combine our greatest skills and determi-
nations to attain the ultimate accomplish-
ments.
This fact of life is quite evident at the
U.S. Air Force Weapons School’s Weapons
Instructor Courses at Nellis Air Force Base, Guard Base in Westfield, Massachusetts
Nevada, “home of the fighter pilot.” The
USAFWS’s WICs provide graduate-level
training to tacticians, ensuring cutting-
edge training and full-spectrum prepara-
tion for land, air, cyber and space battle.
The five-month program includes approxi-
mately 400 hours of academics, combined
with arduous combat training missions.
Support for each WIC is provided by
military units throughout the country,
with the Air National Guard taking an
increasingly larger role.
“Air National Guard support for the
USAFWS bridges the gap between Weap-
ons School requirements and active duty
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sortie generation capacity. The continued
support allows the USAFWS to produce
the number and quality of weapons of-
ficers the Air Force so desperately needs.
This is a shining example of Total Force
Integration done right. The Air Force is
more lethal because of the maintenance
and operations support delivered by the
ANG and AF Reserve at Nellis,” said Lt.
Col. Jeffrey Cannon, USAFWS deputy
commandant.
Currently, 114 members of the 104th
Fighter Wing from Barnes Air National
are deployed to support the USAF WS for
two weeks.
The F-15 Eagles will simulate adversar-
ies in the air. During the upcoming “Core
II” phase of training, students focus on
“integration academics” and hands-on
mission planning exercises. Integration
academics include everything from of-
fensive-counter air, defensive-counter air, commander. “This is an impressively high
suppression-of-enemy air defenses, elec-
tronic warfare, low-observable strike as
well as nuclear, space and cyber warfare.
The Weapons School trains U.S. Air
Force Airmen to be the world’s best across
7November 13, 2015
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the total spectrum of air, space, and cyber the support required to produce the weap-
warfare. ons officers,” said Lt. Col. Jon Berardinelli,
another deputy commandant of the US-
There are two Weapons School classes AFWS. “Over the last six months, we have
per year lasting five months each. Each asked the Guard to provide even more sup-
class graduates 120 students across all port in the adversary role. It’s something
weapons systems in the Air Force inven- that we need, due to a reduced number of
tory. Students specialize in different air- active duty assets, and it’s trending in the
frames, weapons or specialties. right direction. A formal arrangement
is going to take a collaborative effort and
Of those 120 students, about three are commitments across all major commands
from the F-15C community. Maj. Michael and the National Guard Bureau — all for
Glass, 131st Fighter Squadron pilot, is the the greater good.”
104th FW’s most recent Weapons School
graduate, completing the demanding “The 104th has been supporting the
course last June. Graduates wear the il- Weapons School for many years,” said
lustrious Weapons School graduate patch, Col. James Keefe, 104th FW commander.
a prestigious honor for the top guns. “Whether back in the A-10 days or now
with the F-15C’s, we take this role as our
“We have about nine Weapons School responsibility to ensure we have the most
graduates assigned to the 104th Fighter highly trained fighter pilots protecting our
Wing, eight of which fly with the 131st nation. It’s important to us, the U.S. mili-
Fighter Squadron,” said Lt. Col. Tom tary, and the nation,” he said. “Through
Bladen, the 104th FW’s Operations Group our consistent support of the Weapons
School, the 104th has helped maintain a
number, compared to active duty squad- consistent flow of highly trained aircrews
rons, which normally have about two or for not only the Air National Guard, but
three graduates.”
________ See USAFWS, on page 9
“Wings rely on the Weapons School to
produce weapons officers; the Weapons
School depends on those wings to provide
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