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Tinker and Guard SERE train Altus AFB Airmen

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  • By Airman 1st Class Emma Wright
  • 97th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
ALTUS AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  

Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape specialists from Tinker Air Force Base and Will Rogers Air National Guard Base led Altus AFB Airmen through Water Survival Refresher Training at Altus AFB, Oklahoma, July 10, 2026.

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Martin Palomino, 552nd Operations Support Squadron survival, evasion, resistance, and escape (SERE) specialist, works with Airmen assigned to Altus Air Force Base (AFB) to secure a canopy over a life raft during Water Survival Training at Altus AFB, Oklahoma, July 10, 2026. Led by the SERE specialists, Airmen worked together to properly secure the canopy to the life raft. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Emma Wright)

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Martin Palomino, 552nd Operations Support Squadron survival, evasion, resistance, and escape (SERE) specialist, works with Airmen assigned to Altus Air Force Base (AFB) to secure a canopy over a life raft during Water Survival Training at Altus AFB, Oklahoma, July 10, 2026. Led by the SERE specialists, Airmen worked together to properly secure the canopy to the life raft. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Emma Wright)
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All U.S. Air Force aircrew are required to complete Water Survival Training every three years. This training allowed 56 Altus AFB Airmen to be recertified, bolstering their readiness for potential real-world taskings and ensuring those who may be undergoing a Permanent Change of Station soon arrive at their new units fully certified.

“For many of these airframes, one of the most likely emergency scenarios is landing in the ocean,” said Air Force Master Sgt. Travis Heard, 507th Operations Support Squadron SERE specialist. “Being able to survive in that scenario is vitally important. These skills help keep our Airmen ready for whatever the mission demands."

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Stephen Moring, 552nd Operations Support Squadron survival, evasion, resistance and escape (SERE) specialist, teaches Water Survival Training at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma, July 10, 2026. Moring briefed Airmen on emergency procedures, survival concepts, and aircraft-specific equipment. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Emma Wright)

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Stephen Moring, 552nd Operations Support Squadron survival, evasion, resistance and escape (SERE) specialist, teaches Water Survival Training at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma, July 10, 2026. Moring briefed Airmen on emergency procedures, survival concepts, and aircraft-specific equipment. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Emma Wright)
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The refresher training combined academic instruction with hands-on exercises designed to sharpen wartime operational skills. In the classroom, Senior Airman Stephen Moring, 552nd Operations Support Squadron SERE specialist, briefed Airmen on emergency procedures, survival concepts, and aircraft-specific equipment. In the Altus AFB pool, three SERE specialists drilled participants on utilizing life rafts, manipulating canopies for alert, shelter, or evasion, swimming under parachutes and simulating a “parachute drag”, and employing onboard emergency survival gear.

“I’ve been deployed, went on temporary duty assignments, many of which included flying over the ocean,” said Master Sgt. Tiffanie Ellerbe, 56th Air Refueling Squadron department of training superintendent. “This training is essential because in an emergency situation, we don’t have time to sit and think about what to do. We need to have the training, preparation, and skills to survive and adapt, as necessary.”

Ultimately, this joint-force training event successfully closed critical training gaps, ensuring Altus Airmen remain prepared to support global operations around the world.