JTACs bring air power to ground level Published Sept. 6, 2011 By 2nd Lt. Ken Lustig Nellis Public Affairs NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. -- In a rolling desert valley, shimmering with heat in the triple digits even as the sun sets, men in smudgy brownish camouflage move through a maze of clay brick compounds zigzagging across the valley floor. The American flags on their sleeves are paired with small strips embroidered with each man's blood type, a grim reminder that this is no casual stroll. Here, even the flora is armed with thorns and nettles, the rocks are sharp enough to cut leather, and there is no easy ground. Moving in teams, the men methodically search each opening, entryway, and footpath. With level weapons and steady gazes, they smoothly transition from position to position, covering any potential threat while exposing as little as possible. An informant has told them that foreign fighters are in the village trying to extort the elders' council for money, food and conscripts. However, the settlement appears to be completely deserted. In such a village, the tradition mandates that visitors must be afforded hospitality and protection. When no one in the village will accept that obligation, trouble is certain. Suddenly, tiny, rapid flashes appear on the ridgelines above the valley. The distinct rattle of Soviet-made DShK 12.7mm machine guns echoes moments later. As a twenty-foot-high column of dirt and smoke erupts from the ground, the air recoils with the impact of a mortar round. Within seconds, another blast hits. More machine guns open up from a ridgeline near a small, walled compound. In an instant, the village has become a lethal trap. The company's three platoons are cut off from each other, spread out and divided by terrain, the settlement and incoming fire. The company commander rushes to one of the men, who carries a radio pack and even more equipment than the already heavy standard issue demands. "Hey, Air Force!" the commander shouts, "get on the radio and get me somebody in here right now to take those guys out!" The man with the radio is part of a Tactical Air Control Party, or TACP, a group of specially-trained Airmen who act as air liaisons for ground commanders. More specifically, he is a Joint Terminal Attack Controller, or JTAC, an Air Force member whose job is to translate the ground commander's needs into tactical directions over the radio that aircrews can understand. Though enlisted, the JTAC has earned the authority to control air strikes. He quickly readies a "nine-line," a nine-part radio call that efficiently transmits the need for an air strike. He also identifies the target, friendly locations and the aircraft's best approach and egress routes. His partner, another TACP Airman, is the Radio Operator, Maintainer and Driver, or ROMAD, helps the JTAC spot and determine the enemy's exact location. The JTAC picks up the handset and makes the call for air support. The JTAC's voice is calm despite the chaos around him, and he answers a return call a few moments later with the proper confirmations. Soon, the voice on the other end of the radio tells him that two F-16CJ Fighting Falcons, or "Vipers," are in route. Down in the settlement, mortar and machine gun rounds continue to pound the village. A soldier takes a hit, prompting the company commander to lose his temper and get right in the JTAC's face. "Tell those dudes to get in here now!" he barks. "I'm losing people and they're taking their sweet time! Get me some CAS [Close Air Support] or I have no use for you!" The JTAC reassures the commander that the jets are on the way and resumes communication. Together, the ROMAD and JTAC communicate with the inbound aircraft. The JTAC refines his plan, determining which weapons, tactics and procedures will best to engage the attacking insurgents without endangering friendly forces. The ROMAD and JTAC confirm the insurgent's position with a set of rangefinders, and compare their advanced GPS display against an old-fashioned military grid map to ensure they have everything right. Once a jet's 500-pound, GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munition comes off a wing pylon, there will be no taking it back. They find the enemy position is only 170 meters away. This classifies the target as "danger close," or close enough that friendly forces might also be hit by the blast. Soon, the faint but distinct shriek of the Vipers' General Electric F110-GE-129 engines can be heard in the sky. For soldiers taking fire, the figural cavalry has arrived. With the arrival of the jets, enemy fire promptly tapers off. The insurgents know their terrain advantage is lost, and run. This is because the aircraft's SNIPER targeting pod allows the JTAC and ground commander to see the insurgents amidst the roughest terrain, day or night. The pod transmits what it sees via the Remotely Operated Video Enhanced Receiver, or ROVER, feed, sharing its bird's eye view of the battlefield. The pilots check in, and the JTAC begins "talking them on," helping them find the location of friendly forces and the intended enemy target. Soon, the aircrew spots the fleeing insurgents. An aircraft's targeting pod follows the insurgents' every move, tracking them as they retreat into the lone building on the ridge. The aircrew confirms positive target identification via ROVER, and the ground commander gives the JTAC authorization to strike. The JTAC relays the attack plan to the pilots, instructing them to set the fuse so the bomb will punch through the building's roof before exploding, somewhat containing the blast and minimizing the risk of collateral damage. Moments later, the battle concludes as a cloud of smoke and debris rises from the target. An additional pass overhead with the ROVER confirms it has been destroyed. Then, the insurgents emerge, weapons slung, and begin walking down the hill. They remove their head wraps and foreign combat gear, revealing U.S. Army uniforms underneath. The Airmen and Soldiers involved in this battle are all participants in the two-week air-ground combat exercise known as Green Flag-West. The exercise takes place 10 times per year, with each Green Flag-West bringing in new TACP teams and one or two fighter squadrons. The exercise pits students against scenarios that test and develop an array of air-ground skills, reinforcing their ability to support ground forces with intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, air interdiction, close air support and other missions. The battle did not take place in Afghanistan, but at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif., in the Mojave Desert. Various Army units and members of the 12th Combat Training Squadron at Fort Irwin participated on the ground, while an F-16C squadron, training with the 549th Combat Training Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., flew the air mission. All of the units were training together for an upcoming deployment, where they will apply the skills they learned in actual operations. As the sun sets, the most important part of the exercise, the debrief, begins, providing participants with an assessment of what they did right and wrong. Though the battle was simulated, it was done as authentically as possible to ensure the lessons learned are real.
