Silver Flag ’07

Recently the 31st Civil Engineering Squadron from Aviano, along with a covey of other Airmen from various career fields, trained for days in a mock deployment setting known as Silver Flag at Ramstein.

Silver Flag 2007, hosted by the 86th Contingency Response Group’s Combat Support Center and Construction Training Squadron, focused on the revision of antiquated deployment techniques to adapt to a revolutionary, rapid style of warfare better suited to face the needs of the current Air Force as well as the Air Force of the future. Capt. Nicolas Okamura, 86th CRG’s CSC, described the new training as, “a transition from the garrison-like deployments to a more expeditionary Air Force centered on agile combat support.”

Silver Flag presented a unique training environment, not only training new methods of deployment, but also as a training location incorporating Airmen from several career fields alongside civil engineering to ensure combat readiness at numerous levels, unlike any Silver Flag location in the world. Communication is a top priority as Airmen must react to the bare base deployment and prioritize what facilities require immediate construction and what facilities may be completed at a later time. Airmen participating in the Silver Flag exercise came from careers ranging from CE, services, finance, contracting and numerous others.

The training for Silver Flag encompasses base setup, chemical warfare, UXO identification and general problem-solving skills necessary for commanders faced with real-world problems. One example of the troubleshooting skills the Silver Flag exercise tests is a shortage of promised equipment. On deployment day, the group was promised 20 Alaskan shelters but only received nine, requiring quick analysis and decisions to be made in order to achieve success.   

Silver Flag 2007 provided valuable training for Airmen of many different career fields in real-world deployment settings, as well as applying new tactics of warfighting to meet the demands of an expeditionary Air Force faced with ever-changing demands of war.