Edwards Airman helps AFMC win CBRN challenge crown

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Julius Delos Reyes
  • 95th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  An Edwards Airman was part of the Air Force Materiel Command team of bioenvironmental engineering and emergency management professionals that won the Air Force's 2nd annual Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear challenge at Brooks-City Base, Texas. 

Senior Airman Andrew Croop, 95th Aerospace Medicine Squadron bioenvironmental engineer journeyman, first represented Edwards in the competition and was subsequently selected to join the AFMC team. 

"Airman Croop was the only Edwards Airman selected to the AFMC team and was singularly commended for his extensive knowledge and application of the flight's response equipment during the Edwards' local challenge in October," said Master Sgt. Benjamin Winslow, bioenvironmental engineering flight chief. 

AFMC was one of eight Air Force major commands to participate in the weeklong event. AFMC edged teams from Air Combat Command, Air Mobility Command, Air Education and Training Command, Air Force Special Operations Command, Air Force Space Command, Pacific Air Forces and U.S. Air Forces in Europe. An Air National Guard team also participated and captured the Team Spirit award. 

"Participating in this challenge was very hard because I had to use specific equipment and certain knowledge I don't regularly use here," Airman Croop said. "I also have to work with a team of strangers. It was definitely a challenge but well worth it." 

The challenge mirrors potential homeland security and global war on terrorism threats. It was held at the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine's Expeditionary Medical Support site. 

Airman Croop prepared for the competition by gathering useful technical information and checklists. 

"Two days prior to the competition, I met my team for the first time in San Antonio," he said. "We went to Randolph Air Force Base to work with various pieces of equipment and review all of our trouble spots." 

Since then and throughout the competition, Airman Croop and his team studied three times a day, not only to retain information but to learn new lessons as well, he said. 

The exercise included six three-hour scenarios, ranging from a chemical warfare incident designed to test participants' capabilities to assess the health risk of an unleashed chemical weapon to an installation, said Tech. Sgt. Shawn Petro, a USAFSAM bioenvironmental engineering instructor and in charge of logistics for the exercise.

The scenarios are as close to reality as can be, he said. 

"The vehicle-born improvised explosive device scenario was actually a (so-called) 'dirty bomb' that had detonated and caused casualties," Sergeant Petro said. 

All the scenarios were different from those used last year. 

"We included civil engineer emergency management members in this year's exercise," Sergeant Petro said. "We partnered with our emergency management responders. They help us identify hazards and are our base counterparts when responding to emergencies." 

There were also two head-to-head competitions where teams had to identify a chemical and biological sample within time limits. Teams also participated in a TV Jeopardy show-style quiz that tested their CBRN knowledge. 

Winning the competition shows hard work does pay off, Airman Croop said. 

"We couldn't have done it without our ability to work as a team even though we didn't know each other," he said. "Every member of Team AFMC came to the competition with the motivation to win and that's exactly what we did."