MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- Maintenance Airmen participated in a combat munitions training (CMT) class Jan. 8 through 11.
The 23rd Maintenance Squadron (MXS) held the CMT class to acclimate the Airmen with building a Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) and improving their readiness to perform in a deployed environment.
“It’s very important to be adept and comfortable with building bombs because one mistake can put everyone in danger,” said Airman 1st Class Colten Carey, 23rd MXS precision guided munitions technician. “Knowing what you’re doing before you step on to the bomb pad and being conscious of the situation is essential to mission success.”
While learning to build the JDAM, safety and overall situational awareness were emphasized.
“We’re trying to give people the confidence for when they are deployed so they can look at the munitions out there and be adept to the situation,” said Master Sgt. Jackie Adair, 23rd MXS noncommissioned officer in charge of Combat Plans and Training. “Since we are in a training environment here, we don’t deal with war-like munitions on a daily basis so this class is actually a refresher course to keep us combat ready.”
The CMT class included Airmen from different sections within the munitions systems career field such as: munitions, storage, conventional, deliveries, stock pile management, inspections and line development.
“We’re bringing in people from all of our sections to teach them how to work together as a team because that’s how it is downrange,” Adair said. “When we’re deployed we do our jobs as the mission deems necessary. So if the storage unit isn’t as important to the current mission as the maintenance operations then everyone will begin to work on maintenance.”
Along with trying to simulate a deployed environment, the CMT class is geared towards building comradery and cohesion throughout the team.
“This helps them come together as a team because the people in this class have never actually worked together,” Adair said. “When you’re downrange you could be in a shop with people from all over the Military so having the flexibility to work with people from different specialties is imperative to the success of the entire unit.”
At the end of the class, Airmen were given a post-test and most Airman agreed that the class was beneficial.
“Overall I feel a lot more confident on being able to be a productive member of a unit once I go downrange.” Carey said.