GJAKOVA, Kosovo (May 28, 2015) -- The early morning sun bore down on the airfield as members of the Kosovo security force, or KSF, crowded around U.S. Army paratroopers giving instruction on radio communications and recovery of palletized subsistence bundles, which were to be air dropped later in the day.
The daylong events that played out in Gjakova/Dakovica, May 27, were all part of a key humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, or HA/DR, training mission planned and led by the KSF's Rapid Reaction Brigade and supported by several U.S. European Command units.
"We [trained] in the morning with U.S. Soldiers on how to pull security on an airfield, how to properly take apart the [subsistence] bundles and radio training," said KSF 1st Lt. Vegim Krelani, company commander of Alpha Coy, 2nd Battalion, Rapid Reaction Brigade. "We also did slingload training and how to [secure equipment] slings onto helicopters. This was the first time my troops were exposed to it ... and they were very motivated and excited to do something new."
But executing the HA/DR training mission did not just begin in Kosovo as logistical support for the event began more than 1,000 miles away the week before.
"For this mission, we had the luxury of time on our hands in preparing the [subsistence] bundles that went into Kosovo," said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Noel Phelps, a parachute rigger with the 16th Sustainment Brigade's 5th Quartermaster Detachment in Kaiserslautern, Germany. "In a real-world humanitarian aid situation, we are able to prepare these bundles in mere hours in order to get them where they're needed most."
The need to react quickly to a HA/DR situation is something that the U.S. military has plenty of experience with as shown in recent experience in Nepal, Haiti and New Orleans.
"Our ability to get these aid supplies out the door quickly with the help of the [U.S.] Air Force is what, I think, really gives U.S. Army Europe the capability to go anywhere in Europe at a moment's notice when help is needed," Phelps said.
Back in Kosovo, the pre-noon training ended and it was finally time to put the KSF to the test.
As classroom training ended, the roar of turboprop engines grabbed everyone's attention as a C-130 Hercules with U.S. Air Forces in Europe's 86th Airlift Wing flew over the airfield and parachuted four containerized delivery system, or CDS, bundles. Upon impact, the KSF took off to recover the pallet utilizing various aspects of the training they had just received - one team secured the airfield while four others handled the bundles.
Accompanying the KSF teams, one U.S. Soldier provided assistance to ensure all tasks were performed properly.
"It was the first time we have participated in a joint aerial exercise with the KSF," said U.S. Army Maj. Jason Wayne, operations officer for the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division. "They did outstanding. We were able to establish communications using the KSF radio systems to actually do the drop [and it] demonstrated the increasing capacity of the KSF."
As mandated by Kosovo's constitution, the KSF are an emergency response force charged with conducting crisis response operations in Kosovo.
"Humanitarian assistance and disaster relief is a key skill set for the KSF," Wayne said. "It is a skill they need to be proficient at. Kosovo experiences annual flooding, which cuts off lines of communication and ground routes to villages and towns, especially in the south. Demonstrating the ability to call in aerial delivery shows the ability of the KSF to reach out and support the populous when called upon."
A close working partnership also proved to be critical, as multiple moving parts were required to work in unison, to accomplish the mission.
"This was a huge joint effort," said U.S. Army Capt. Mike Smolucha, lead engineer and air officer for the 4/25 IBCT (ABN). "An enormous amount of coordination took place and a lot of things had to come together in order to make today happen. It took a lot of coordination with U.S. Army Europe and the KSF to resource the bundles that were going to be air dropped."
The training not only tested the KSF, but also the U.S. Soldiers and their ability to accomplish the joint mission.
"This was great training for everyone involved," Smolucha said. "It tested our ability to bring [high-performance] aircraft here and accomplish a strategic air drop. We had a slight shift in the timeline, but, other than that, today went smoothly. Everyone took something away from today.
The planning for the HA/DR training started in January and, although a lengthy process, the KSF commander on the ground, Krelani, said it was well worth all of the hard work.
"Anytime you exchange experiences with other militaries you learn something," Krelani said. "You are sharing knowledge. I know my company learned a lot this morning. I am already looking at the next potential training in the future."
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