AMARI AIR BASE, Estonia – U.S. Air Force Airmen from the 31st Civil Engineer Squadron, 100th CES and the Estonian air force participated in a Expeditionary Airfield Damage Repair Agile Combat Employment exercise at Amari Air Base, Estonia, Aug. 26-29.
The 4-day exercise was broken up into two parts; the first two days were used for familiarization with systems and process, the last two days NATO Allies and Partners watched as the U.S. and Estonian air forces repaired a simulated crater on a flightline.
“It enhances our capabilities across NATO,” said 2nd Lt. Christopher Soliani, 31st CES geographically separated unit program supervisor. “This allows us to build partnerships with our NATO Allies, strengthening the bonds between us.”
Exercise EADR utilizes easy to obtain materials, leaner kits and Fiber Reinforced Polymer mats to repair damage to airfields. The kits can be prestaged at GSU’s and other NATO bases to ensure the force can generate combat airpower from more locations within the area of responsibility.
“It’s essential to constantly integrate and work with each other,” said Lt. Karl-Erik Tamm, Amari Air Base commander of airfield maintenance. “This overall strengthens our collaboration and cooperation between counties.”
Exercises like this showcase the ability to bolster critical infrastructure defense across USAF and NATO forces. This demonstrates the ability to integrate and train together, standardizing practices with the common goal to improve resilience and survivability of coalition airpower.
“The share of knowledge between the countries is really important because it allows us to learn from each other,” said Tamm. “It changes our collective capabilities and ensures that we are better prepared for joint operations.”
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