Manas Airmen train with Kyrgyz firefighters

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Daniel Nathaniel
  • 376th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
MANAS AIR BASE, Kyrgyzstan (AFNEWS) --  Airmen of the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing fire department here have worked and trained side-by-side with Manas International Airport firefighters for five years.

With each new Air Expeditionary Force rotation, a new crew of Airmen arrives and trains with the Kyrgyz firefighters of the MIA to stay prepared to save lives and fight fires.
Air Force fire departments are required to have mutual aid agreements with neighboring fire departments, said Senior Master Sgt. Daniel Krowpman, the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing fire chief.

"If there was an emergency that was overwhelming or outside our scope of capability, they would be able to help us or we help them," Sergeant Krowpman said.

Before they can train with their host country counterparts, the members of the rotation must first train to work as one.

"We are represented by six different units that have never actually worked together," Sergeant Krowpman said. "We do our own in-house training to become a cohesive unit first, and then we start our training with the mutual-aid companies, so we can become one big group and know what's going on together."

In late February, AEF 5 and 6 firefighters began the first of three planned exercises with the Kyrgyz firefighters.

The scenario was the same for both days of training -- respond to an aircraft fire on the flightline, practice hooking up the Kyrgyz and coalition trucks with hoses. One object of the exercise is for the MIA truck to supply the 376th AEW coalition truck with water.

"If it's a ground emergency, it's going to be on the flightline or the parking area," Sergeant Krowpman said. "A lot of those areas do have hydrants, but they could be several hundred feet away. The crash trucks usually don't carry a lot of hose on them."

"Those hydrants several hundred feet away (might as well be) a mile a way," Sergeant Krowpman said. "If you do have that much hose then there is a lot of friction loss that goes with those hoses pushing the water from the hydrant to the truck. You won't get the volume of water you need."

For other types of emergencies, response training is practiced in case a plane crashes off the runway where there are no hydrants, he said. "These trucks will bring the water to you rather than worrying about hose lines."

The Airmen said they appreciate working with the host nationals.

"The Kyrgyz fire department was very knowledgeable," said Staff Sgt.Vincent Anselmo, a 376th AEW firefighter. "I would call them the resident experts as far as Manas Air Base goes."

"They seem pretty used to working with us," Sergeant Anselmo said. "They knew exactly what we needed. They hooked right up. They knew exactly what they needed to do and they did it."

"We can always rely on their help," said Leonid Suleiymanov, the fourth shift leader of the MIA fire department. "We have to work together and give help to each other."

The effectiveness of the joint training between the departments was aptly demonstrated last September, when the two fire companies came together to put out an aircraft fire.

"The two departments did an excellent job by not letting the fire extend further into the plane," Sergeant Krowpman said. "The past training that was done between the two departments paid off."

The continuous training with each rotation does not grow old for the MIA team.

"We definitely learn from each other," said Mr. Suleiymanov, a 30-year veteran firefighter. "We learn new techniques and teamwork."

"Sometimes we have a language barrier, but professionally we are similar," Mr. Suleiymanov said.

"We all pretty much do business the same way," he said. "We put the wet stuff on the red stuff." 

Comment on this story (comments may be published on Air Force Link)

Click here to view the comments/letters page