MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. -- The rotors chomp through a screen of dust as the CH-46E Sea Knight helicopter leaps into the sky to conduct an area familiarization of Twentynine Palms as part of Integrated Training Exercise 4-14 on June 8, 2014.
The pilots and Marines with Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 774, 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, Marine Forces Reserve, deep in austere desert and surrounded by more than 100 square miles of barren training area, shook off the year-old rust to refresh their piloting proficiency.
ITX 4-14, the largest Marine Corps Reserve training exercise with more than 4,000 Marines and sailors participating from units across the United States, focuses on aggregating forces from all over the nation for two weeks to train. This helps demonstrate the ability to rapidly assemble and employ the Marine Air-Ground Task Force for global contingency operations.
The area familiarization was the first flight operation during the two-week exercise and the first time the pilots had flown in a desert environment since last year’s ITX.
“The crawl–walk-run methodology was used for today, being the first day of flight (operations) during the exercise,” said Capt. Stacy Martinez, a CH-46E Sea Knight helicopter pilot with HMM-774. “(The pilots) had to practice landing on the unimproved surface before we conduct training with Marines in the back of the bird.”
Taking off and landing in a desert environment introduces the pilots to many new and unfamiliar obstacles. The unit is based out of Norfolk, Virginia, where the training areas have improved surfaces such as flat ground and solid pavement.
“Generally, back at Norfolk, our landings are on solid ground, whether it is a flight line or a grassy field,” said Martinez. “Everything is a perishable skill. Just because we did it last year doesn’t mean that we can do it smoothly today.”
The differences between the two training areas are night and day to the pilots. The Sea Knights kick up pounds of dust while landing in the harsh unimproved desert, blocking the pilot’s view of the landing area.
“This area is drier, dustier and much harder to see than where we normally train,” said Lance Cpl. John Buckly, a CH-46E Sea Knight helicopter crew chief with HMM-774. “The pilots have to rely on the other Marines in the aircraft to watch for obstacles blocking the (landing zone).”
As battalions and squadrons progress through the training, they are required to integrate together as a cohesive team though shared planning, briefing, rehearsals, execution and debriefing. This interaction builds inherent understanding that Marines must possess in order to fight as a complete MAGTF.