423d TRS provides instruction to joint partners in Joint Aircraft Load Planning course

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Jake Carter
  • U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center Public Affairs
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  

Members from the 423d Training Squadron on Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, recently instructed members from the U.S. Army during the Joint Aircraft Load Planning course in Caserma Del Din, Vicenza, Italy.

JALP is a two week long course focusing on inter-agency, inter-governmental and multi-national partners improving joint unit readiness and reduces a unit’s need to rely on the Air Force to prepare and load plan cargo for their movement.

“We were tasked as the mobility training team instructors to deliver the JALP course to Soldiers assigned under the U.S. Army Southern European Task Force – Africa,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Maria Wilkening, 423rd TRS inspector. “When the Army prepared for deployments and exercises in the past, they would rely heavily on the Air Force aerial ports and joint inspectors for assistance which would cost time and resources. By training them to be more self-sufficient, we can focus our energy on the inspection.”

Through JALP, the 423rd TRS gets the experience working with other partners while learning their jobs and seeing a bigger picture. It also provides new concepts to implement during the course.

“Multi-Capable Airman is an up-and-coming concept that the JALP course can play a large part in,” said Tech. Sgt. Danielle Galich, JALP NCO in charge. “Suppose we can share our knowledge of cargo preparation and load planning with Air Force specialty codes who would be eligible as MCA. In that case, we can better prepare them for the Agile Combat Employment we anticipate to be the operation style of our immediate peer threats.”

JALP additionally offers the ability for joint services to be more self-sufficient, enabling fewer discrepancies and frustrated cargo during joint inspections and on-time departures of aircraft. By doing so, it reduces cost and time while enabling higher mission success rates.

“During instruction, a [U.S. Army] Chief Warrant Officer sought our expertise in load planning and asked us to advise him on a real-world tasking as their unit was tasked with a rapid deployment from North African Response Force,” said Galich. “I looked over their load plans and assisted them in preparing for their joint inspection. Our advisement aided in the on-time departure and safe transport of personnel from 5 different units and 10,000 pounds of hazardous cargo.”

As a result of the 423rd TRS instruction efforts and their real-world subject matter expertise, Galich and Wilkening were nominated for the Army Achievement medal by the host unit in Italy.