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A .50-caliber bullet and a 7.62mm bullet rest in fron of a Barret M107 caliber rifle at Coulee Dam, Washington, Sept. 26, 2018. Airmen from the 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron explosive ordinance team underwent familiarization training with the Barret M107 caliber rifle as part of their annual weapons qualification. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Lawrence Sena)

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Senior Airman Erika Andresen, 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron explosive ordinance disposal technician, fires a Barret M107 caliber rifle as part of weapons familiarization training at Coulee Dam, Washington, Sept. 26, 2018. A part of EOD's mission set is irregular warfare, which requires them to be familiar with a variety of weapons systems in order to perform the mission. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Lawrence Sena)

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Senior Airman Erika Andresen and Senior Airman Taylor Preza, 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron explosive ordinance disposal technicians, prepare ammunition prior to weapons qualifications at Coulee Dam, Washington, Sept. 26, 2018. Since a deployment tasking can happen at an time, EOD technicians need to maintain annual weapons qualifications in order to stay mission ready. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Lawrence Sena)

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Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Janke, 92nd Security Forces Squadron combat arms instructor, listens to a safety brief prior to weapons qualifications at Coulee Dam, Washington, Sept. 26, 2018.Airmen perform weapons qualifications annually in order to maintain versatility with the variety of weapons systems that may be utilized down range. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Lawrence Sena)

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Airman 1st Class Jordan Christian and Senior Airman OScar Ordonez, 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron explosive ordinace disposal technicians, perform weapons qualifications as Staff Sgt. Kyle Rodgers, 92nd Security Forces Squadron combat arms instructor, ensures proper procedures are being followed at Coulee Dam, Washington, Sept. 26, 2018. The benefits of heavy weapons training enales Airmen to learn and improve the skills necessary for the mission and beyond. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Lawrence Sena)

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Senior Airmen Taylor Preza and Staff Sgt. Garret Olson, 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron explosive ordinance disposal technicians, perform heavy weapons qualifications at Coulee Dam, Washington, Sept. 26, 2018. Airmen from the 92nd CES EOD team performed heavy weapons qualifications on the M240B fully automatic rifle. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Lawrence Sena)

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Airmen from the 92nd Security Forces Squadron and 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron explosive ordinance disposal team perform heavy weapons qualifications at Coulee Dam, Washington, Sept. 26, 2018. Airmen train with a variety of weapons systems including the M240B fully automatic rifle, 249AR fully automatic rifle and the Barret M107 caliber rifle to maintain proficiency and familiarization with the weapon. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Lawrence Sena)

Fairchild’s SFS, EOD heavy weapons qualification, familiarization

Published Oct. 1, 2018
By Airman 1st Class Lawrence Sena
92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. -- --
Team Fairchild Airmen from the 92nd Security Forces Squadron and 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron Explosive Ordnance Disposal team participated in an annual weapons qualification and familiarization training at Coulee Dam, Washington, Sept. 26, 2018.

Security Forces Airmen qualified with the 249AR machine gun, while the EOD team qualified with the M240B machine gun and were introduced to initial familiarization training with the Barret M107 rifle.

Airmen perform weapons qualifications annually in order to maintain versatility with the variety of weapons systems that may be utilized in a deployment setting.

“Security forces are the first line of defense for a base,” said Tech. Sgt. David Dudley, 92nd SFS Combat Arms Instructor. “Having these Airmen qualify on these heavy weapons systems enables them to perform their duties as the first line of defense with success.”

Weapons qualification training is beneficial and crucial for Airmen especially in the event of a short notice deployment tasking by ensuring they are ready to deploy and conduct the mission successfully.

“One of our mission sets as EOD technicians is irregular warfare,” said Senior Airman Taylor Preza, 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron Explosive Ordnance Disposal technician. “This means working with special operations teams throughout the Department of Defense and, becoming more familiar with these weapons systems makes us a greater asset to the team instead of being a liability.”

The ability to integrate with joint services improves the capability of performing the mission with success as a joint task force, said Preza.

The benefits of this heavy weapons training enables Airmen to learn and improve the skills necessary for the mission and beyond, said Dudley.

The ability to stay mission-ready enables Airmen to continue to provide timely movement, positioning, and sustainment of joint forces where and when needed.