Exercise Southern Fury News Article

This article about the Southern Fury exercise from last week appeared in the "Beafort Gazette." The AH-64s mentioned in the story were in fact from 1-151 AVN at McEntire JNGB rather than from Hunter AAF.

Realistic training exercise helps soldiers prepare for battle
By DAN HILLIARD

Marine Cpl. Richard Arellano has been to Iraq twice, and, each time the conflict's nature has become more intense. Insurgents have developed better bombs and better ways to deploy them; they've learned to freeze mortars over their launch tubes so they can escape before the ice melts and the mortar launches; and they've found a way to fashion bombs disguised as bricks.
Arellano expects to go back next summer as a convoy driver, and said constant training is necessary to stay on top.

To that end, Arellano joined Marine drivers and pilots from Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort in a three-day combat cooperation exercise with representatives from all four military branches last week at Townsend Bombing Range near Ludowici, Ga., about 100 miles from Beaufort.

About 28 drivers from Marine Wing Support Squadron 273 and 80 pilots making up four squadrons worked with nearly 600 Army, Navy and Air Force participants to run a mock convoy through the imaginary hostile town of Georaqi.

Marine F/A-18 fighter jets and Apache helicopters from Hunter Army Airfield circled a five-vehicle convoy of Marines as they made a two-hour, 25-mile trip from the range to a truck turnaround near Ludowici. Navy corpsmen were on hand to deal with medical emergencies.

Along the way, the Marines stopped to investigate potential "threats" -- suspicious vehicles parked on the side of the road and likely ambush points.

When a "threat" was identified, the Marines fanned out, formed a perimeter around the lead Humvee and called for an air strike against the target.

This allowed the Marines, the pilots, the Air National Guard traffic controllers and everyone in between to simulate a live combat situation, said Capt. Dennis Dalton, Marine Aircraft Group 31 commander.

"We're running scenarios that are similar to what they'll see in Afghanistan and Iraq," he said. "This is a No. 1 priority for the Marines in the Anbar province -- support the convoys as much as possible. We take what we learn in the theater and the things that are happening now and apply them in the scenario."

According to air station spokesman Sgt. Rob Sell, about 50 of Squadron 273's 250 personnel are deployed at any one time on a rotating basis. Some personnel returned from a nine-month deployment in April, and they are scheduled to make another late next summer.

Dalton said most of the military personnel training Tuesday have not seen combat.

"Exercises like this help us better prepare for cooperation in combat," he said.

"We're not for any one service here. There are some times when they make mistakes, but that's why we train. You want to make your mistakes here, not in combat."

Because of the evolving nature of the Iraq war, combat simulations have to be run and adapted often, said Lt. Col. Bill Bowers, commanding officer for Squadron 273.

This is the second combat cooperation exercise run this year, he said. The last one was in July, and another is planned for March. A long-term goal is to run a simulation at least once every quarter, he said.

"The tactics are always being refined," he said. "The enemy's tactics, techniques and procedures have to be incorporated into the exercise. The enemy won't usually do just an IED (improvised explosive device). They'll cover it with snipers or an ambush."

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Steve Baker said a new technique is embedding a forward air traffic controller in each convoy to coordinate more precise strikes.

"The opportunities we have right now for these kids on the ground is great," he said.

"To actually hear that guy in your convoy talking to the planes in the air is awesome."

Bowers said he was happy with the exercise overall, though one of the lead Humvees got too far ahead of the convoy due to a faulty map.

"You've got big log trucks blowing by you and traffic lights that can split up the convey. That's a lot of responsibility, and it can short-circuit you," he said. "Plus, when you've got aircraft going overhead at 500 mph, that's even more to consider."

After navigating two convoys safely through Georaqi, the F/A-18 and Apache helicopter pilots took turns dropping dummy bombs on a make-shift town on the bombing range. Their goal was to hit a 6-foot target from 13,000 feet with a 25-pound inert bomb.

Air National Guard traffic controller Maj. Stuart Strickland said emphasis in the exercise again was on effective communication and cooperation. Strickland and his crew are a part of the Savannah Combat Readiness Training Center.

A radar panel in front of Strickland displayed a maze of streaks and blips surrounding the bombing range, each representing an aircraft in flight or in a holding pattern. Keeping the streaks far from the blips required constant chatter and adjustments.

"Basically, we provide safety of flight for all operations in the restricted area," he said.

"We coordinate the air space, then hand them off to command and control. It allows us a god's-eye view."

Exercise Southern Fury - Final Report

Exercise Southern Fury proved to be an interesting monitoring target. I thoroughly enjoyed the three days of Close Air Support and Convoy Escort activity. To me, this kind of activity is amongst the most interesting things to listen to on the radio. It could be compared to monitoring an active fireground channel in the field of public safety monitoring. Listening to how each participant has a role to fill and how different aircraft and different services fit into the puzzle is fascinating to listen to. The convoy escort work in particular was good monitoring; in that role, the aircraft served just as much as an "eye in the sky" for the convoy as they did as "bomb-dropper."

If anyone remembers exercise Carolina Guardian from July, the activity was very similar.

Southern Fury featured participants from at least three different services and eight aviation units (not counting the ground units that I could not hear). From the USMC, there was VMFA-115, VMFA-122, VMFA(AW)-224, VMFA(AW)-533, and VMGR-252. From the South Carolina Air National Guard, there was the 169th Fighter Wing. From the South Carolina Army National Guard, there was 1-151 AVN. An E-8C from the 116th Air Control Wing, a blended USAF/Georgia Air National Guard unit participated as well.

Frequencies
277.400 = Jax Center Brunswick Low
282.200 = Jax Center Jekyll Low
322.500 = Jax Center Savannah Low

139.700 = Safety of Flight
228.400 = Townsend Range, CAS
252.900 = Townsend Range, CAS
301.950 = Convoy Escort (normally VMFA-312 Tac 1)
300.200 = Fighter Check-in with FAC-A
358.900 = MAG-31 Base
302.200 = Check-In/Out with JSTARS
261.600 = Aerial Refueling with OTIS 13

225.725 = JSTARS Discrete
376.125 = JSTARS Discrete
388.225 = JSTARS Discrete (unencrypted/encrypted)
355.250 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)
372.150 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)
381.000 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)

339.500 = VMFA-115 Tac 1
225.675 = VMFA-115 Tac 2
274.500 = VMFA-115 Tac 3
283.400 = VMFA-122 Tac 1
354.325 = VMFA-122 Tac 2
250.300 = VMFA-224 Tac 1
258.900 = VMFA-224 Tac 2
336.225 = VMFA-224 Tac 3
299.300 = VMFA(AW)-533 Tac 2
141.825 = 169th FW V14
50.450 = 1-151 AVN air-to-air

Callsigns
STARGATE = E-8C, 330 CTS
HONCHO = FAC/JTAC
SMOKEM(?) = unknown Ground Station
KAISER = MAG-31
BLADE = F/A-18A+, VMFA-115
NIKEL = F/A-18C, VMFA-122
BENGAL = F/A-18D, VMFA(AW)-224
HAWK = F/A-18D, VMFA(AW)-533
OTIS = KC-130, VMGR-252
MACE = F-16CJ, 169th FW
MARAUDER = AH-64, 1-151 AVN
KNIGHT(NIGHT?) = unid ground station wkg JSTARS

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Exercise Southern Fury, Day 2

Exercise Southern Fury continued today, including participation from the 169th Fighter Wing, SC ANG and 1-151 AVN, SC ARNG from McEntire JNGB. The morning sorties again included participation from JSTARS.

277.400 = Jax Center Brunswick Low
282.200 = Jax Center Jekyll Low
322.500 = Jax Center Savannah Low

139.700 = Safety of Flight
228.400 = Townsend Range, CAS ISR
301.950 = Convoy Escort (normally VMFA-312 Tac 1)
300.200 = Fighter Check-in
358.900 = MAG-31 Base
302.200 = unknown use

225.725 = JSTARS Discrete
376.125 = JSTARS Discrete
388.225 = JSTARS Discrete (unencrypted/encrypted)
355.250 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)
372.150 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)
381.000 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)

339.500 = VMFA-115 Tac 1
225.675 = VMFA-115 Tac 2
283.400 = VMFA-122 Tac 1
354.325 = VMFA-122 Tac 2
250.300 = VMFA-224 Tac 1
336.225 = VMFA-224 Tac 3
299.300 = VMFA(AW)-533 Tac 2
141.825 = 169th FW V14

STARGATE = E-8C, 330 CTS
HONCHO = FAC/JTAC
SMOKEM(?) = unknown Ground Station
KAISER = MAG-31
BLADE = F/A-18A+, VMFA-115
NIKEL = F/A-18C, VMFA-122
BENGAL = F/A-18D, VMFA(AW)-224
HAWK = F/A-18D, VMFA(AW)-533
OTIS = KC-130, VMGR-252
MACE = F-16CJ, 169th FW
MARAUDER = AH-64, 1-151 AVN


Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Exercise Southern Fury

Exercise Southern Fury kicked off this morning. F/A-18s from MCAS Beaufort worked at Townsend Range with support from an E-8 JSTARS from the 116th ACW at Robins AFB. My monitoring was incomplete due to work, but here is a listing of frequencies and callsigns from my monitoring prior to work:

282.200 = Jax Center Jekyll Low
322.500 = Jax Center Savannah Low

139.700 = Safety of Flight
228.400 = Townsend Range, CAS ISR
301.950 = CAS/ISR (normally VMFA-312 Tac 1)

225.725 = JSTARS Discrete
376.125 = JSTARS Discrete
372.150 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)
381.000 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)
388.225 = JSTARS Discrete (encrypted)

339.500 = VMFA-115 Tac 1
283.400 = VMFA-122 Tac 1
354.325 = VMFA-122 Tac 2
250.300 = VMFA-224 Tac 1
336.225 = VMFA-224 Tac 3
299.300 = VMFA(AW)-533 Tac 2

STARGATE = E-8C, 330 CTS
HONCHO = FAC/JTAC
SMOKEM(?) = unknown Ground Station
BLADE = F/A-18A+, VMFA-115
NIKEL = F/A-18C, VMFA-122
BENGAL = F/A-18D, VMFA(AW)-224
HAWK = F/A-18D, VMFA(AW)-533
OTIS = KC-130, VMGR-252

Another possible exercise frequency is 302.200, but I haven't confirmed it yet. Hopefully I'll have more to add tomorrow.

Mac McCormick, KF4LMT
kf4lmt@comcast.net

Marine Times Reports: 300 troops head to Ga. for exercise Monday

Staff report
Posted : Thursday Nov 1, 2007 11:34:54 EDT

JACKSONVILLE, N.C. — Several East Coast military units will come together in Georgia on Monday for a three-day large force training exercise.

Marine Aircraft Group 31, based at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, S.C., is playing host to Southern Fury, an exercise aimed at enhancing the interoperability of different branches’ ground and aviation units, according to an air station press release.

Marine Wing Support Squadron 273 will conduct convoy operations with Humvees and 7-ton trucks around Townsend Bombing Range near Jesup. Overhead, F/A-18 pilots from Beaufort will practice air interdiction and close-air support, strike coordination and aerial refueling techniques with a KC-130J Hercules from Marine Aerial Refueling Squadron 252, based at MCAS Cherry Point, N.C.

The South Carolina Army National Guard’s 1-151st Aviation Battalion out of McEntire Joint National Guard Base in Eastover, S.C., will provide AH-64 Apaches to support convoy operations in a simulated urban environment.

Nearly 300 Marines and soldiers are participating in the exercise.