CAMP BUEHRING, KUWAIT- Air traffic controllers from the 1st Airfield Operations Battalion, 245th Aviation Regiment, played an integral part of an inadvertent instrument meteorological conditions training exercise at Camp Buehring, Kuwait on Nov. 22.
The group of controllers facilitated communication and movement of aircraft and emergency responders in the area throughout the training event in which they help pilots who have lost the ability to pilot their aircraft by visual cues due to weather conditions.
"We are the eye in the sky, so our role is very important because we make sure the pilots aren't landing blindsided in the event of low visibility," said Spc. Gardenia Garibo, an air traffic control operator with the 1st AOB and Oklahoma City native.
The event was designed to test abilities and response times to aircraft landing under distress and in inclement weather.
Garibo, on her first deployment and first experience operating in the tower, said she gained valuable knowledge of operating procedures during the event.
"I was a little nervous but I feel we did well overall. It's always good to prepare for this type of scenario so when an actual event happens we are ready," said Garibo.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 David Zahn, event coordinator and airfield operations safety officer with the 1st AOB, came up with the idea for the event during a mission at the beginning of this deployment. He was flying a medevac aircraft with an injured person on board and had to return to base due to worsening weather conditions.
"The process then could have been more streamlined so I recreated the scenario based off those events so everyone could learn and gain the experience," said Zahn, a Broken Arrow, Oklahoma native
Many elements were involved in the event including military police and fire rescue.
Zahn said he is hoping to expand agency involvement for the next training event to include hazardous material cleanup, chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive response and emergency medical services.
"The exercise went well today and the minor deficiencies we found were a great highlight because they will help us learn and become better," said Zahn.
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