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AMC stands up first Contingency Response Wing

  • Published
MCGUIRE AIR FORCE BASE, N.J. --  Air Mobility Command stood up the Air Forces first Contingency Response Wing here March 1.

The CRW, which will replace the 621st Air Mobility Operations Group, will expand the AMOGs current mission and imbed all necessary capabilities, such as security forces, finance, intelligence, civil engineering, and more.

With the stand up of the CRW, instead of reaching out to various units across the Air Force for each function, the capabilities will be imbedded in to Contingency Response Groups. Just as the AMOG does now, the CRW will fall directly under the command of the 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force here.

The best part about the change will be that everyone within the CRG will be able to train together and focus on working together as a team, said Brig. Gen. Bobby Wilkes, 21st EMTF commander.

The synergy of having trained specialists who know each other prior to deploying is key," added General Wilkes. "Our Airmen will be trained to 'open the base' and will know where everything fits. They will be focused on their region prior to deploying.

The general said the need for change started with Operation Enduring Freedom. "The campaign in Afghanistan required a major airlift effort due to the countrys location. We learned many lessons on opening airfields. So, the chief of staff decided the Air Force needed to pay more attention to this part of the mission."

The units mission is just that open the air base.

As soon as the base is seized, we insert our capabilities, explained General Wilkes. The CRG has many capabilities to apply to opening an airfield, such as security forces, airfield assessment, medical support, command and control, aerial port and maintenance functions. CRGs are designed to pave the way for follow-on air expeditionary forces responsible for generating and sustaining the bases mission. Thats when we hand it over to the AEF commander and move the CRG to the next location.

The commands first CRG entered formal training at the Air Mobility Warfare Center at nearby Fort Dix two weeks ago. The CRG FTU focuses on team building during a four-week course of instruction that includes areas such as close-battle tactics and convoy operations. The course culminates with participation in a capstone exercise, such as EAGLE FLAG.

We are looking at this change as a mission evolution, said Lt. Col. Patrick Owens, 821st Air Mobility Squadron commander. We are taking a significant capability and building upon it. With expanded capability and more structured training, we are better prepared to accomplish our mission with precision and speed.

While Team McGuire members may not notice a change, the Air Force and joint community will certainly see a more capable "open-the-base force as a result of the new CRW construct.

Shortly after the CRW stand up here, AMC will continue the evolution to the CRG concept with the stand-up of another CRW at Travis AFB, Calif., making AMC home to six of the Air Force's eight CRGs.

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