Security Airmen train to handle active shooter threats

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Logan Tuttle
  • 52nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs
SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany (AFNS) --  "Bang bang!"

The shouts were heard back and forth as the two security forces Airmen shuffled quickly onto another floor of the building, looking down the sights of their M-9s.

"Bang bang!" 

The lone threat, actively 'shooting' with his red plastic shotgun, had been stopped.

This exercise was just one example of how 52nd Security Forces Squadron Airmen have been preparing for a specific threat. Active shooter training focuses on how the security forces Airmen can save lives in situations where the assailant's only intention is to shoot as many people as they can.

"It's not a new threat; it's been around since guns have been around," said Staff Sgt. Adam Fagan, a 52nd SFS trainer for active shooter response.

Incidents with an active shooter on military installations include Ft. Hood, Texas, in 2009, a reservation on Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., in 2009 and Fairchild AFB, Wash., in 1994. Off-base active shooter situations include Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999 and Virginia Tech in 2007.

"It's just a threat we live with today," Sergeant Fagan said.

"The Air Force didn't have a plan written in stone so everyone was not on the same page with an active shooter," he said. "A lot of situations happened where we didn't respond quickly enough, and we could have saved more lives."

"Now the Air Force has a plan," he added. "We went to San Antonio so they could train us, so we could go back to our stations and train our Airmen."

The training was designed to show the responders how to enter, move down hallways and rooms in buildings, and use these tactics instead of setting up a cordon around the building like security forces members are typically trained to do.

"I was pretty proud of the way they actually moved," Sergeant Fagan said. "They got in there and neutralized the threat quickly, and that's what we're looking for."

The training now enables security forces responders to move in and get to the source of the threat without waiting - namely to save lives by moving quickly and effectively.

"Once there are gunshots heard, we're moving in, we're not waiting." Sergeant Fagan said. "You have to realize (security forces members) are there to save lives. When the call comes over the radio, you have to put your game face on, and get in there."