GREAT FALLS — Airmen with the 120th Airlift Wing recently completed a four-day Combat Readiness Inspection (CRI) designed to test what happens when the job gets harder, the hours get longer and conditions become less predictable.
Watch the video below:
The inspection, called Operation War Hog Breakout, was conducted at the 120th Airlift Wing in Great Falls and at Fort Harrison in Helena. According to the 120th AW, the inspection evaluated the wing’s ability to survive, operate and complete mission-essential tasks in a simulated deployed environment while preparing airmen for future federal and state missions.
For the airmen involved, that meant long days, little sleep, field conditions and realistic training scenarios meant to push them outside their normal routine.
Master Sgt. Jacob Riggs, the 120th Security Forces Squadron unit training manager, helped build the training plan, and he says the design was intentional.
“We put them through a grueling process to make them tired,” Riggs said, explaining the goal was “to make them resort back to their fundamental training.”
According to leadership, a CRI is a test of whether airmen can still do their jobs when conditions start to break down.
For defenders with the 120th SFS, the inspection included land navigation, room-clearing operations, convoy escort missions, forward operating base security and force-on-force training using simulated munitions.
Lt. Col. Scott Backus, commander of the 120th SFS, said the inspection gives the wing a chance to look at both strengths and weaknesses.
“So just an evaluation to identify any weaknesses or areas that we need to work on a little better,” Backus said. “We try to make it as real as we can, but there’s only so much that you can do to replicate the actual being deployed.”
That is where leaders say the inspection moves beyond a checklist. When airmen are tired, communication is limited or the plan changes, they are being tested on whether they can still make clear decisions, work together and continue the mission.
While the training is built around combat readiness, leaders say the skills also matter here at home.
“We can be called up by the governor and report and perform state active duty during natural disasters like flooding or wildland fires,” Figarelle said.
He explained many members of the Guard also have civilian jobs, families and employers in communities across Montana. That means when airmen train, deploy or respond to an emergency, the impact reaches beyond the military.
“We have relationships within the community,” Figarelle said. “So having those ties when we go out and perform missions, we’re directly impacting our neighbors, our friends, our employers and their quality of life.”
Now that the inspection is complete, leaders say the next step is to use what they learned, from the wing’s strengths to areas that need improvement, to help shape training in the months ahead.
