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Airmen from the 435th Construction and Training Squadron and a Lithuanian airman participate in a training exercise with a Mobile Aircraft Arresting System July 20 on Ramstein. The MAAS is intended to be installed at expeditionary airfields and enables fighter pilots to safely land in the event of an in-flight emergency due to aircraft equipment failures.
Cadre from the 435th Construction and Training Squadron trained Airmen from the U.S. and Lithuania on using the Mobile Aircraft Arresting System July 20 on Ramstein.
These students attended the training to bolster allied partnership capabilities and ensure they return to their home station with a wealth of knowledge they couldn’t obtain elsewhere.
The MAAS is a contingency airfield asset that allows for the safe retrieval of tail hook aircraft during an in-flight emergency. It is air-portable and can be installed in a variety of methods and on practically any surface type to provide coverage in a variety of scenarios.
According to Tech. Sgt. Ryan Robart, 435 CTS NCO in charge of power production contingency training, the training can benefit more than just Lithuania.
“After the training and certification, the Airmen will have all the knowledge and skills necessary to install the MAAS in a deployed location,” Robart said. “As a NATO partner, the Lithuanian military helps support other NATO allies in certain situations. There have been multiple U.S. fighter aircraft that have had to make emergency landings at a Lithuanian air base.”
The 435 CTS is the only squadron in the Air Force that provides both training on the system and can perform depot-level overhauls.
This class is one of many mission-essential equipment training courses that electrical power production Airmen, as well as other crafts within civil engineering, offer.
According to Senior Master Sgt. Joseph Lamberti, 435 CTS command contingency training superintendent, these classes leave instructors and other Airmen involved wiser and more open to future cooperative efforts with allied nations.
“Our NCO corps always enjoys executing training for anyone they can, and every class is unique,” Lamberti said. “Listening to and exchanging methodologies with other nations is an added bonus for our cadre. The takeaways strengthen our program.”
These training opportunities not only serve to educate U.S. partners and provide them with world-class training but also to bring countries together at the working level to form relationships and learn from each other.
For more information on training opportunities, contact the 435 CTS at 435CRSS.AAF@us.af.mil.
