SCOTIA, N.Y. – The New York Nationwide Guard’s 109th Airlift Wing hosted a German Air Drive officer in June as a part of the Army Reserve Trade Program.
MREP allows Guard and Reserve Airmen and Troopers, each officers and enlisted, to coach with choose allied nations. It helps contributors enhance their information of overseas reserve forces and demonstrates continued assist of NATO members and their militaries.
Oberstleutnant Heiko Radermacher spent two weeks touring and studying in regards to the numerous missions, ability units and working kinds of New York Air Nationwide Guard models.
Radermacher is the equal of an Air Drive lieutenant colonel. He’s the deputy upkeep commander from thirty first Tactical Wing, a unit in Western Germany close to Cologne that flies the Eurofighter.
Radermacher’s first alternative to go to was a fighter unit, just like the one he works at in Germany. He wasn’t certain what to anticipate when he matched with an Air Nationwide Guard mobility unit.
“I had no clue earlier than what the Air Nationwide Guard did. I assumed you probably did the drill as soon as a month and an train annually and that was it. I wasn’t conscious of the regular work doing all the operations, how many individuals are full-time working every single day,” Radermacher stated.
This system matched Radermacher with Capt. Joshua Bowers, wing govt workers officer for the 109th Airlift Wing. Bowers was additionally a previous enlisted crew chief and started his profession as an officer in upkeep.
This system matches service members, however as soon as personnel are on the unit it’s as much as the internet hosting member to arrange excursions, coaching and schedules.
“The target of this system is to see how the opposite aspect does it after which see what you’ll be able to take again with you, positives and negatives,” Bowers stated. “While you’re at a unit for a very long time, you get within the behavior of, ‘that is the best way it’s achieved.’ It’s not till you go see one thing else that you simply be taught there may be multiple option to do it. Your aperture opens, and you may acknowledge there’s a entire lot extra occurring than solely what you see.”
Along with his time on the 109th, Radermacher toured the 174th Assault Wing, the a hundred and fifth Airlift Wing and the Division of Army and Naval Affairs.
In the course of the go to, the officers realized they’d way more in frequent than they thought.
“We now have totally different organizational buildings, however we’re doing the identical stuff and we do it practically the identical means. We traveled to totally different upkeep retailers, propulsions, avionics, fuels, speaking intimately — we’re practically the identical,” Radermacher stated.
The overseas MREP contributors spent three days touring Washington, D.C., Annapolis, Maryland, and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to be taught extra about America’s historical past and tradition earlier than reporting to their assigned models.
“That is such an awesome program — to see the Capitol, expertise the tradition and vital locations to the historical past of the US, be immersed within the English language,” Radermacher stated. ”I don’t converse English each day. I can pay attention and skim it OK, however it was good to observe talking it.”
As a part of this system, Bowers will journey to Germany within the fall to go to Radremacher’s unit and see how they function.
“I’ve at all times been thinking about worldwide relations. The purpose of this system is to start out relationship-building,” Bowers stated. “If down the highway we’re in Germany and wish one thing, we’ve got some connections — you’ll be able to’t do all of it — however it’s important to know who can do what. The connection-building is important on the native stage, nationwide stage and worldwide stage.”
