Dover reservists work to form Canadian sister squadron program

  • Published
  • By Capt. Marnee A.C. Losurdo
  • 512th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. (AFNS) --  Reservists here visited members of the Royal Canadian Air Force's 8 Wing at Canadian Forces Base Trenton, Ontario, Aug. 22 through 24 as part of an effort to initiate a sister squadron program.

Airmen with Dover's 512th Airlift Wing hoped to forge a partnership with the Canadian airmen and identify training opportunities for flying, aerial port operations, airlift control and maintenance procedures.

A C-17 Globemaster III and 10 members from the 326th Airlift Squadron, the 46th Aerial Port Squadron, the 512th Airlift Control Flight and the 712th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron flew to the Canadian base, two miles northeast of Trenton, Ontario, to meet with active-duty members of the 429 Transport Squadron and 2 Air Movements Squadron.

Lt. Col. Craig LaFave, the 326th AS commander, said he came up with the idea of pairing up with the Canadians while working as the 512th AW program integration officer as the 326th AS transitioned to the C-17 in 2007 and 2008.

Much like the 326th AS, the 429 TS has been flying the C-17 since the summer of 2007.

The 429 TS is part of the 8 Wing, which is the heart of Canada's air mobility forces and is at one of the largest air force bases in Canada.  According to the unit's Web site, In addition to the C-17, 8 Wing aircrews also fly the CC-130 Hercules, the CC-150 Polaris, the CH-149 Cormorant tactical transport search and rescue helicopter and the CC-144 Challenger. 

On the first day of their visit, Capt. Steve Churchill, a 326th AS aircraft commander, and his crew received a flight briefing about air space protocols and procedures in Canadian airspace. The next day, the 326th AS aircrew flew a training mission consisting of low-level navigation, assault landing zone operations, tactical arrivals and departures in Canadian military airspace.

"It's great for low-level flying," Captain Churchill said. "We benefited from this training, because we were able to fly procedures we can't typically conduct on the East Coast due to heavier air traffic."

In the future, the 326th AS aircrews plan to fly with 429 TS aircrews, the captain said.

"The program will allow our crews and unit personnel to exchange unclassified tactics, techniques and procedures while building camaraderie with our Canadian allies," Colonel LaFave said.

Reservists from the 46th APS and 512th ALCF met with 2 Air Movements Squadron members Aug. 24 and received a tour of their facilities. On average, the Canadian squadron processes 23 million pounds of freight and 42,000 passengers annually, according to the unit's Web site.

"Anytime we can get together and train, it will enhance our mutual operations, which are not all that different," said Canadian Maj. Aaron Spott, the 2 AMS commanding officer. "We deploy to the same areas and share the same ramp space, so the more we know about each other's systems, the better we can work together."

Senior Master Sgt. Dan Schultz, the NCO in charge of the 46th APS ramp section, said he is looking forward to working with the Canadians.

"We like this idea, because it's an excellent opportunity to jointly train together, which is beneficial for us, especially with an operational readiness exercise next year and the operational readiness inspection in 2011," Sergeant Schultz said.

This isn't the first time 512th AW reservists have trained with the Canadians.

"The Canadians have been down here this summer using our C-17 simulator, and my special projects office has sat down with them during the planning for these missions," Colonel LaFave said.

Also, the 512th ALCF and reservists from throughout 22nd Air Force participated in Maple Flag Exercise 42, held at Cold Lake Air Base, Alberta, Canada, from May 29 through June 14.

The 512th AW's next trip to Canada is planned for Sept 12.

"We hope we can continue a regular exchange, probably quarterly or semi-annually," the colonel said.