Airmen, Soldiers complete joint airborne training

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Javier Alvarez
  • JBER Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  Airmen and Soldiers parachuted out of various C-130 Hercules and C-17 Globemaster IIIs, as part of a joint training exercise at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Aug. 21 to 24.

Tactical Air Control Party Airmen from across the Pacific Air Forces area of operation were invited to parachute alongside Soldiers of the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, said Air Force Staff Sgt. Ryan Saltzgaber, 3rd Air Support Operations Squadron personal parachute program manager.

The training exercise is known as Jump Week by the Air Force personnel, and Predictable Iron Alaska by US Army Alaska. Despite the name difference, the mission for all involved is the same – to complete five jumps in the week, said Sgt. 1st Class Jonathon Wells, USARAK air operations and plans coordinator.

“We use this training to solidify our airborne operations,” Saltzgaber said. “We are an airborne TACP unit, and our primary mission is to be airborne inserted with our Army counterparts.”

For the first three days, service members jumped out of C-130s with MC-6 and T-11 parachutes, Saltzgaber said.

On the final day of training, four C-17s carried more than 390 service members for a mass-exit jump. The cascade of paratroopers cut through the fog and rain from 1,200 feet, for their assault on Malemute drop zone.

“There’s a lot of planning that goes into coordinating this annual jump,” Saltzgaber said. “The jumpers have a lot of fun, and we hope to continue doing it for years to come.”