ANSBACH, Germany -- Two Bundeswehr Soldiers from the 30th Helicopter Brigade weather branch, stationed at Neiderstetten Air Base, visited Detachment 4, of the 7th Weather Squadron here, Dec. 13, 2016. This was the second meeting of the two units and the first time it was hosted at Katterbach Army Airfield, home to the US Army's 12th Combat Aviation Brigade.
The purpose of the visit was to familiarize each organization with their neighboring weather observing station, compare technical approaches to forecasting and build future joint training opportunities to identify interoperability challenges.
Building rapport with your neighbor is always important to weather forecasters. Each station is primarily responsible for their own forecast but helicopters are never static in a dynamic operating environment. Understanding how another weather unit operates is helpful when you rely on their data to make your own operations a success.
During the visit, Capt. Dan Bigley, Commander of Detachment 4, led a presentation overview of how the USAF weather career field is structured to support both Air Force and Army operations. The remainder of the Det 4 team showcased the tools and capabilities that USAF forecasters utilize to create precision weather products.
Maj. Matthias Radochla, commander of the German weather team, and Bigley spoke about the importance of team work in the joint operations environment within the European theater. "The idea is to ensure we can efficiently work together with our NATO allies, at a moment's notice" said Bigley.
The Detachment 4, 7th Weather Squadron looks forward to future training opportunities with the Neiderstetten weather team in the summer of 2017 during joint field training exercise at Grafenwoehr Training Area.
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The 7th Weather Squadron is headquartered out of Wiesbaden Germany and is USAREUR's only Combat Aviation Brigade Weather team. Detachment 4, at Katterbach Army Airfield, trains and conducts weather aviation support throughout USAREUIR, EUCOM, and NATO for CENTCOM, AFRICOM and other global contingencies.
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