KADENA AIR BASE, Japan –
Shogun Shield is a recurring dynamic Agile Combat Employment exercise for the 18th Wing, with December’s iteration taking place over the course of three days. This exercise aims to sharpen skills and improve adaptability in all environments so Airmen deployed to remote locations simulating search and rescue missions in austere locations.
The 31st and 33rd Rescue Squadrons had to pause that exercise when a real-world medical evacuation request came through – testing the very adaptability and readiness they were training to build in the first place. Their task: rescue a U.S. Navy sailor aboard the USS Benfold off the coast of Okinawa, Japan, Dec. 3, 2024.
On the first day of the exercise, the team coordinated their departure to a remote location. Within 30 minutes of setting up their operation center they received the request from the USS Benfold.
“Immediately, leadership started working through the right channels to get execution authority for the U.S. Navy Sailor that was on Benfold,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Jesse St. Clergy, 33rd RQS HH-60W Jolly Green II pilot.
As the lone rescue squadron attached to the U.S. Air Force's largest combat wing, the 33rd RQS provides a reliable combat search and rescue platform to aid in exercises and real-world operations within the Indo-Pacific region.
To support these demands, they train rigorously to stay current on certifications to remain safe and effective while conducting real-world missions involving low-level flying, hoisting, water operations, and entering and exiting contested environments.
The medevac unfolding as an immediate, high-stakes operation requiring the squadrons to quickly shift their focus, amplified their Shogun Shield training experience according to the U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Douglas Dashiell, 33rd RQS director of operations.
Shogun Shield prepares Airmen to be mission-ready and events like the short notice evacuation on the USS Benfold Sailor exemplify that ability.
“Aircrew that want to become rescue aircrew do so because they want to help people,” said Dashiell. “We join with the desire to perform a benevolent mission, we train tirelessly for it, so to be able to execute and deliver in a real-world scenario feels pretty good. It’s definitely the type of mission where you go home to smile at yourself in the mirror.”