MOBEX sharpens mobility go-how

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Monica L. Dalberg
  • 514th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  514th Air Mobility Wing members got the chance to practice and show off their mobility savvy Nov. 4-7, here, with a mobility exercise that pushed limits and solidified the deployment process.

A mobility exercise, or MOBEX, affords Airmen the opportunity to train in a simulated wartime environment. The exercise involves long-range planning and coordination among many base agencies and personnel. Most Reservists have civilian jobs, and accommodating a MOBEX takes planning in their lives outside the military as well.

Such exercises help to ensure those involved in the mobility process are knowledgeable in their deployed military duties. The member's ability to survive and operate under many threat conditions are put to the test. The exercise also provides training on the equipment necessary for wartime deployments.

"There was lots of enthusiasm and attention to detail. Players took what we said seriously and applied it. I'm very pleased with the results of this training," said Senior Airman Manuel King, an emergency management technician for the 514th Civil Engineering Squadron.

Units appointed personnel to act as evaluators. The evaluators quizzed participants in their career field knowledge and their abilities to properly demonstrate their mission-oriented protective posture and ability to survive and operate in wartime conditions.
Various scenarios were used to simulate adverse conditions. Missile launches, small arms attacks, missing persons, and even a typhoon were some of the settings used to put skills to the test.

"It went very well," said Lt. Col. Larry Edwards, an evaluator and training representative for the 514th Operations Groups. "Medical supplies were limited to simulate conditions for first responders and they managed to treat eight or nine patients," he said of the post-typhoon scenario.

"If you haven't been deployed this is a terrific training exercise because you learn what goes on in a war environment," stated Staff Sgt. Winston Fernandez, a 514th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron logistic medical material technician. "This was a great tool for new Airman and a good refresher for the rest of us!"