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Up to the challenge: Space Command comm units face off in graded combat

  • Published
  • By John Stuart
  • Tinker Public Affairs
TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  After only a few minutes outside, everyone was soaked to the bone. It hadn't taken long from the

7 a.m. start time for Airmen at the Glenwood Training Area to realize they weren't going home with even an inch of dry uniform. So it was that the rain kept falling April 17, on the first competition day of the four-day "Combat Challenge."

In the end it came down to two team finalists, that were announced at the closing ceremonies April 19: Tinker's 3rd Combat Communications Group and the 5th Communications Group from Robins Air Force Base, Ga. They were selected from the five competing teams and will both travel to Petersen Air Force Base, Colo. in May where the overall winner will be announced.

But even as ponchos and Gore-Tex shells became dear friends and sodden, mud-packed boots a sloshing nightmare, the Airmen didn't lose focus over the rainy weekend. The five participating units knew why they came. They knew what was on the line in the historic combat communications competition.

"We love it," said Capt. Stephen Maddox with the 5th Combat Communications Group. "You don't know what the weather's going to be like when you deploy in a combat zone so you just have to deal with it, you have to adapt and overcome and that's what we're doing today. No one wants to be the second best, but the best. That's all there is."

Captain Maddox had just led his team through the capture the flag event Saturday in a blazing 30 seconds as they routed the Air National Guard's 162nd Combat Communications Group from North Highlands, Calif. Captain Maddox's team had surged off the starting line, fitted out with laser-targeting MILES gear and M16s. They pushed forward to the "flag," a 160-pound mannequin, and pulled it back to the start while avoiding enemy fire.

"It's good to see hard work resolve in rewards," said Airman Ryan Byler, who pulled the mannequin back for the victory. "This is a dream job right now."

Though he didn't disclose the strategy, Captain Maddox gave the gist of it.

"Quick and dirty," was all he said. His statement embodied the capture the flag event, but not much else that day as rain delays splashed across the schedule most of Saturday.

The weather was a definite game-changer for the teams, which also included the 201st Combat Communications Group from Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, and the 252nd Combat Communications Group from Camp Murray, Wash., Air National Guard.

The seven-event competition proved a different animal in the rain. Airman 1st Class David Linden of the 3rd Herd made a powerful showing on the PT Challenge, maxxing out three of the four events. His 100 sit-ups, 80 pushups and 20 pull-ups proved a hefty number to best, but the three-mile run was tough in the rain. Airman Linden earned the ironman award for the top overall PT score.

"It went well considering the weather," Airman Linden said. "Regularly it might be fun, but today (the rain) slowed us down a bit, trying to avoid the puddles or just deciding to go through them. But hopefully that will work to our advantage. The other teams aren't used to this kind of weather. It's Oklahoma weather."

Airman Linden was right. Not long after the PT challenge, on another portion of the course, the Hawaii Airmen weren't singing Mother Nature's praises.

"Frankly I'm freezing," said Tech. Sgt. Robert Hoffman with a laugh. "It's a little chillier than what we're used to definitely. The old saying if it ain't raining we ain't training comes to mind."

The Hawaii team had just wrapped up the Team Tactical Challenge -- a series of obstacle courses and buddy carries. Most notably it featured several low-crawls through soggy sandpits.

Sergeant Hoffman, with the 201st Combat Communications Group, said the Hawaii team had never trained in rainy conditions or in temperatures below 75 degrees leading up to the flight to Oklahoma City. The 55 degrees and rainy conditions at Tinker were a definite contrast. But the Hawaii team had an additional logistics challenge. They weren't able to train as a whole group before the competition. They hail from different Hawaiian islands and thus couldn't formally muster before competition.

"The first time that all of us were together was climbing on the airplane," Sergeant Hoffman said. "We had trained two or three here, two or three there, it was hard to get the funding to travel to one island to train.

"Not one of us had ever worn the MILES gear. I myself have not touched an M16 since 1976, so it's just a lot of challenges. But we're just having fun being here. It's a great experience, a lot of good people, we're doing some networking, learning a bunch of stuff. It's been good experience for us."

The partnership between active duty and National Guard units is further emphasized through the Combat Challenge, as it boasted a mix of each. Rubbing shoulders and ammo belts with some of the best active duty groups is a plus for guard units, Sergeant Hoffman said.

"The part of learning more from these active duty units is why we're here," Sergeant Hoffman said. "We're also thinking two years down the line when Guardian Challenge comes again, to see what works for some teams and what we can adopt and things like that."

So, Hawaii will be back in it in two years, Sergeant Hoffman hopes, with more training and experience under their kevlars. But they're not the only ones without competition experience lately.

For the past 14 years the Combat Challenge has been on hiatus, due to high ops tempo among combat communications units. But this year the Combat Challenge is back. It's now a part of Air Force Space Command's long-standing "Guardian Challenge," the world's premier biannual space and cyberspace competition, which will take place May 19 at several locations.

Tinker's 3rd Herd team of 17 people began training in January for the Combat Challenge as did their nemesis the 5th MOB. It's training that paid off, as both teams came out on top. The 3rd Herd was the only team to complete the 10-hour bare base communications setup event, however, a major scoring factor in the challenge. Although the overall winner has been decided, the combat communications faithful must wait until May to revel in the ultimate glory of victory.

But even as the winning outcome is uncertain, one thing is definite. Although the events are completed, the competition is anything but over.