KADENA AIR BASE, Japan. -- U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to the 33rd Rescue Squadron and 18th Civil Engineer Squadron conducted airfield damage assessment during a routine readiness exercise at Kadena Air Base, Japan, May 8, 2025.
Airfield damage assessments enable response teams to create an accurate picture of runway damage and aid engineering assistants plans to return airfield operations to normal.
Typically, airfield damage assessments are conducted by personnel on the ground sweeping the area. During the readiness exercise, the 18th CES Explosive Ordnance Disposal refined their ability to visually clear the runway.
The 18th CES joined the 33rd RQS on an HH-60W Jolly Green II to perform airfield security and a post-attack reconnaissance sweep for unexploded ordnance or injuries after a simulated attack on the runway and base infrastructure.
“Exercises are an opportunity to try new techniques and see what works,” said Senior Airman Giovanni Varano, 18th CES explosive ordnance disposal technician. “We can improve what we’ve been doing and really test our skills and capabilities.”
The implementation of an airborne asset along with civil engineers and EOD allows for multi-role integration of an airborne asset outside of its primary function.
“[Airfield damage assessment] is not something we typically train for, our primary role is personnel recovery in combat search and rescue,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Troy Fenner, 33rd RQS pilot. “However, being able to implement outside of our primary scope is something our community prides itself in. We are always searching for ways to improve ourselves.”
Learning from planned and executed operations, the 18th Wing will continue to flex its enhanced operational abilities to respond to real world scenarios as the Keystone of the Pacific.