{"id":188684,"date":"2024-05-29T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-05-29T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=188684"},"modified":"2024-05-29T15:49:09","modified_gmt":"2024-05-29T15:49:09","slug":"benelux-surges-to-demonstrate-multinational-readiness-and-interoperability","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=188684","title":{"rendered":"Benelux surges to demonstrate multinational readiness and interoperability"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n A Belgian Air Force A400M aircraft lands at Chi\u00e8vres Air Base to offload troops during the Storm Tide 24 multinational exercise on May 20, 2024. (U.S. Army photo by Richard Komurek)
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CHIEVRES, Belgium \u2013 From 140 Belgian and French paratroopers parachuting from the sky to the emergency response of dozens of Belgian and German police, fire and ambulance personnel, U.S. Army Garrison Benelux was abuzz with operations in support of the Belgian-led Storm Tide 24 multinational exercise at Chi\u00e8vres Air Base and an Integrated Protection Exercise (IPE) at Zutendaal and D\u00fclmen Army Pre-positioned Stock-2 (APS-2) sites.<\/p>\n

Both exercises covered a wide range of real-world crises, from a multinational Noncombatant Evacuation Operation (NEO) for Storm Tide 24, to the electrocution of warehouse workers and a railhead accident for the IPE.<\/p>\n

The varied scenarios, together with significant multinational and host nation participation, highlight the strategic importance of the garrison\u2019s installations and mission.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe demonstrate our garrison\u2019s readiness every day – whether we are conducting garrison-level exercises at D\u00fclmen and Zutendaal or supporting the Belgian-led multinational exercise Storm Tide 24,\u201d said Col. Lindsay Matthews, USAG Benelux commander. \u201cThese exercises validate our important role in enhancing regional defense and security together with host-nation emergency responders, Allied military forces and joint U.S. forces in Europe.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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\n On May 20, 2024, 140 Belgian and French Soldiers parachuted onto Chi\u00e8vres Air Base during the Storm Tide 24 multinational exercise. (Photo by Michiel Peeters)
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For Storm Tide 24, Chi\u00e8vres Air Base (CAB) became a hub for multinational air operations involving Belgian, French, Spanish and U.S. aircraft that supported the simulated NEO of approximately 900 Belgian reservists and civilians. The evacuees were flown to the NATO airfield at CAB from multiple locations in Belgium, where they were processed by Belgian foreign affairs officials just like a real NEO crisis. CAB was also the training ground for Belgian Special Forces, Dutch Marines and French Soldiers who simulated the takeover and securing of an airfield during a crisis operation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis exercise is paramount for us because this is one of our main tasks \u2026 to be able to evacuate our citizens from anywhere in the world,\u201d said Lt. Col. Jean-Charles Defawes, Second Commando Battalion commander. \u201cSo we have to train for this kind of operation in realistic circumstances, which is why we come here to Chi\u00e8vres Air Base. They offer a lot of flexibility, opportunity and realistic infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n Belgian Special Forces patrol the airfield at Chi\u00e8vres Air Base during the Storm Tide 24 multinational exercise on May 20, 2024. (Photo by Martin Detry, Belgian HQ Special Operations Regiment)
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A unique Army base with a NATO airfield operated by U.S. Airmen<\/strong><\/p>\n

The NATO airfield at CAB is operated by the 424th Air Base Squadron (ABS) of the United States Air Force, which normally supports 10 air operations (including arrivals and departures) per week in support of the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR). For Storm Tide 24, the mission tempo jumped dramatically to 96 operations for the week, an increase of 860%.<\/p>\n

For the approximately 60 Airmen of the 424th ABS, this surge in air operations is a challenge that provides realistic training for times of crisis or war and forces everyone to work together as one seamless team.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s a big muscle movement for the whole squadron. Everybody has a piece in supporting these operations,\u201d said Lt. Col. Chelsea Hall, 424th ABS commander. \u201cA lot of our sections are only one or two members deep, so it forces us to come together and learn other people’s jobs under the Multi-Capable Airman concept.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Staff Sgt. Kevin Hallam, a U.S. Air Force air traffic controller, the opportunity to work in a multinational environment at a NATO airfield with drop zones and landing operations is a unique opportunity that provides valuable experience that will help him advance and become a landing zone controller.<\/p>\n

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\n Staff Sgt. Kevin Hallam, an air traffic controller for the 424th Air Base Squadron at Chi\u00e8vres Air Base, makes radio contact with a pilot preparing to land an aircraft during the Storm Tide 24 multinational exercise on May 22, 2024. (U.S. Army photo by Richard Komurek)
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When it comes to radio contact with pilots from across the Alliance, the different accents can sometimes be a little challenging to understand, said Hallam. But it\u2019s also something easily overcome because the contact here is like a friendly conversation, and they talk in more detail to ensure everyone understands, he said.<\/p>\n

Protecting people and assets at Army APS-2 sites<\/strong><\/p>\n

The garrison Integrated Protection Exercise is an annual training event that ensures garrison staff, Army Field Support Battalion personnel and host nation emergency responders have the opportunity to train together to respond jointly to an emergency or crisis at USAG Benelux installations. These installations, located in Belgium, The Netherlands and Germany, rely heavily on partnership and support from host nation police, ambulance and fire departments for the safety and security of garrison personnel and Army materiel.<\/p>\n

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\n U.S. Army Garrison Benelux personnel and German emergency responders react to an accident scenario during an Integrated Protection Exercise at the D\u00fclmen Army Pre-positioned Stock-2 site on May 22, 2024. (U.S. Army photo by Sandra Wilson)
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\u201cHost nation participation is critical because in the event a real-world emergency happens, it is the host nation emergency services that will respond, take incident command, provide aid to the casualties and transport casualties,\u201d said Lauryn Miramontes, an operations specialist at Zutendaal APS-2 site. \u201cExercising with our host nation directly affects mission readiness in ensuring we have the most current and correct battle rhythm in place for requesting host nation emergency services and our host nation is familiar with the personnel, buildings, and equipment on our installation.\u201d<\/p>\n

For this year\u2019s IPE, particular emphasis was made to create emergency training scenarios based upon routine garrison operations. At the Zutendaal site, the scenario involved the electrocution of three warehouse workers to test the emergency response from both Brunssum Military Police and Belgian first responders. At the D\u00fclmen site, the scenario involved an Army Humvee that fell off a railhead ramp killing one person and injuring a second, requiring the support of German police, fire and medical personnel.<\/p>\n

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\n U.S. Army Garrison Benelux personnel and Belgian emergency responders react to an accident scenario during an Integrated Protection Exercise at the Zutendaal Army Pre-positioned Stock-2 site on May 23, 2024. (U.S. Army photo by Char\u00e9ll de Koster)
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“The host nation emergency responders were happy to participate in the exercise and said they would like to do it more often,” said John Hopper, USAG Benelux Emergency Manager. “Garrison and tenant unit staff were also reassured that in case of an emergency incident, the garrison and our host nation partners are ready to respond jointly to get them back up to being safe and mission ready.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Belgian Air Force A400M aircraft lands at Chi\u00e8vres Air Base to offload troops during the Storm Tide 24 multinational exercise on May 20, 2024. (U.S. Army photo by Richard Komurek) (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL CHIEVRES, Belgium \u2013 From 140 Belgian and French paratroopers parachuting from the sky to the emergency response of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":188686,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-188684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/188684","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=188684"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/188684\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":188693,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/188684\/revisions\/188693"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/188686"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=188684"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=188684"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=188684"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}