ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam (AFNS) — About 225 Airmen and three B-2 Spirits from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, deployed here Aug. 7 to conduct familiarization training activities in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.
The goal of the training is to maintain force readiness by conducting flight operations in an environment outside of the U.S.
“The objectives I outlined are simple,” said Lt. Col. Robert Makros, the 13th Bomb Squadron commander. “I want everyone to come back better and more lethal than before they left.”
Makros’ objectives may be simple, but it’s the execution of the mission that will carry this deployment toward and through the finish line.
“Everyone understands the role they play in the B-2 global strike mission and what it provides to leadership,” Makros said. “The flexibility and ability to strike, at the time and place of leadership’s choosing, any target set on the globe with precision, range, stealth and a massive payload, conventional or nuclear, is what makes this aircraft incredible.”
Senior Airman Jeico Sanchez-Arias, a 509th Security Forces Squadron security journeyman, guards a B-2 Spirit on the flightline at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Aug. 12, 2015. Airmen and B-2s from the 13th Bomb Squadron at Whiteman AFB, Missouri, are deployed to Guam to conduct familiarization training activities in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Joseph A. Pagán Jr.)
Makros also said the 13th Bomb Squadron will be training with sister services and other joint aircraft while capitalizing on multinational training events.
Executing the mission provides flexibility to Air Force Global Strike Command senior leadership, making the B-2 a credible and viable option that delivers decisive effects around the globe.
AFGSC routinely evaluates their readiness and reposition of forces as needed to ensure they maintain both the operational and support capabilities essential to meet training needs; this includes planned deployments to various regions around the globe, providing commanders of major commands and combatant commands a global strike capability and extended deterrence against potential adversaries.
“It’s why we signed up and what we train for every day,” Makros said. “Our aircrew and the entire B-2 team constantly push themselves to be the best because they understand being the best is a must when it comes to generating and flying 30-hour missions, and successfully striking targets halfway around the globe.”
The familiarization training will not only be conducted by B-2 aircrews but also by the maintainers and support personnel on the ground.
“Maintainers, cops, support staff — everyone is receiving great training while deployed here,” said Master Sgt. Daryl Allen, the 2nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron first sergeant. “We all face obstacles and new training scenarios that aren’t always present stateside, and we have to be ready to fix the aircraft, prepare the aircrew and get it in the sky as quickly and efficiently as possible; that comes from everyone working together.”
By Senior Airman Joseph A. Pagán Jr., 2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs / Published August 19, 2015
