YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan -- Team Yokota held a Major Accident Response Exercise (MARE) at Yokota Air Base, Japan, Feb. 16. The exercise is also scheduled to repeat before the 2023 Friendship Festival, so the entire installation is primed for any emergency.
“The purpose of the MARE is base-wide preparation for a mishap,” said Capt. Alex Randall, 374th Airlift Wing Safety chief of flight safety. “This ensures that all first responders and supporting agencies are ready.”
The MARE scenario simulated a C-12 Huron aircraft crash to test the base response in a high-stress environment.
“Today, we are practicing firefighting techniques, medical care, fuel spill cleanup, fuel sampling and safety investigation board initiation, and safeguarding of evidence,” said Randall.
Realistic scenarios also help leadership evaluate the readiness of their personnel and resources should an incident occur.
“We have created a scenario involving a local aircraft and we expect all agencies on base to run their checklists as if it were a real world,” said Randall. “Mishaps are rare, and a scenario like we practiced today is unlikely to occur, but training hard prepares us to respond to any contingency.”
Team Yokota executed the emergency response and then transitioned the scenario to the Interim Safety Board for a simulated investigation initiation.
“We are definitely prepared for any potential mishap we may face,” said Randall.