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On the cover: German armed forces 1st Lt. Tim Jantzen, Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) with the 131st Artillery Battalion in Weiden, Germany, aims a training weapon inside the 227th Air Support Operations Squadron's new Air National Guard Advanced JTAC Training System at the 177th Fighter Wing of the New Jersey Air National Guard in Egg Harbor Township, N.J. on Feb. 26, 2016. U.S. Air Force JTACs from the 227th hosted a five day combined training event which included close air support controlling at Warren Grove Bombing Range in Ocean County, N.J. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Andrew J. Moseley/Released) MARCH 2016, VOL. 50 NO. 3 THE CONTRAIL STAFF 177TH FW COMMANDER COL . JOHN R. DiDONNA CHIEF, PUBLIC AFFAIRS CAPT. AMANDA BATIZ EDITOR/SUPERINTENDENT, PUBLIC AFFAIRS MASTER SGT. ANDREW J. MOSELEY PHOTOJOURNALIST TECH. SGT. ANDREW J. MERLOCK PHOTOJOURNALIST SENIOR AIRMAN SHANE S. KARP AVIATION HISTORIAN DR. RICHARD PORCELLI WWW.177FW.ANG.AF.MIL This funded newspaper is an authorized monthly publication for members of the U.S. Military Services. Contents of The Contrail are not necessarily the official view of, or endorsed by, the 177th Fighter Wing, the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense or the Depart- On desktop computers, click For back issues of The Contrail, ment of the Air Force. The editorial content is edited, prepared, and provided by the Public Affairs Office of the 177th Fighter Wing. All Ctrl+L for full screen. On mobile, and other multimedia products photographs are Air Force photographs unless otherwise indicated. tablet, or touch screen device, from the 177th Fighter Wing, tap or swipe to flip the page. please visit us at DVIDS! Lead with value-based decision-making by Col. Patrick Kennedy, Vice Commander The Army defines military ethics as the mor- duty. This is the expectation of our profes- Secretary Carter’s memo identifies using al principles that guide us in the conduct of sion, and is the standard against which our values such as honesty, integrity, loyalty, missions, performance of duty and all as- fellow service members and the American accountability for actions and decisions, pects of life. Moral principles are what in- public hold us. The Air Force Professional is fairness and impartiality, respect and re- spires and motivates all of us to make the a trusted servant of our Nation who ad- sponsibly citizenship into our decision mak- right decisions and take the proper actions heres to the highest standards of charac- ing process. Every Airman is absolutely vital at all times. The USAF publishes the Ameri- ter, courage and competence. How we act to our mission success and serves as a lead- ca’s Air Force – A Profession of Arms; this is represents to countless others the collec- er at some level. Use these values as a the document we used to know as “The tive identity of the United States Air guide in your decision making; the results Little Blue Book”. Force.” will improve our ability to execute our mis- Col DiDonna recently challenged all Jersey sion and deepen trust. Devils to unconditionally trust each other to execute the mission and to trust the The 177th Fighter Wing’s priorities listed leadership throughout the Wing to uphold below speak to the same values and ethical the highest standards. In addition to that behavior Secretary Carter is encouraging intra-wing trust, we should never forget leaders at every level. Continue the great we serve the citizens of both New Jersey work you always do and thank you for your and the United States. Any actions that dedication to our state and nation. are contrary to or violate our Core Values Recently, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter can and likely will break the trust of our sent out a memorandum challenging DoD fellow Airmen and the citizens we serve. leaders at every level to implement value- based decision-making with the intent to “foster a culture of ethics and promote ac- countability, respect and transparency ONE TEAM: unified focus ISO the Wing Mission, supportive of the “Wingman Culture” throughout the Department”. This message is consistent with the Air Force Core Values; Transparent Operations and Accountable Execution Integrity first, Service before self, Excellence in all we do. It is an excellent reminder and guide of the Disciplined/Regulatory/Compliant Approach to Mission Execution= Effective/Safe Ops values and principles for all Air Force mem- bers. Below is a paragraph from “A Profes- Leadership that Empowers, Mentors, & Challenges sion of Arms” that I believe captures what it Focused Professional Development: producing leaders at Community/State/National takes to be a professional Airman: levels “For those of us who join this proud com- munity of Airmen - whether officer, enlist- ed, civilian, Active, Guard, or Reserve - be- ing a part of the Air Force family requires we commit to living these values, on and off Training with NATO allies promotes standardization Story and photos by MSgt. Andrew Moseley 177th FW/PA German armed forces Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs) trained with JTACs from the 227th Air Support Operations Squadron (ASOS) at the Warren Grove Bombing Range and at the 177th Fighter Wing of the New Jersey Air Nation- al Guard on Feb. 25, 2016. The five day combined training event included familiarization briefs, hands-on Combat Air Sup- port (CAS) controlling and simulations. The differences in the way American JTACs train was readily seen by the Germans. “It’s incredible that you have all of the JTACS pooled in one position, you have a fighter wing right next to it, and you have a simulator indoors, right around the corner. It’s all nice and com- pact,” said 2nd Lt. Michael Barthel, German JTAC from the 26th Airborne Regiment in Zweibrücken, Germany. Fluent in English, the international language of aviation, the German JTACs appreciated being able to meet and brief with F-16 fighter pilots from the 177th FW prior to training. From left, U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Chris Donohue, Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) with the 227th Air Support Operations Squadron (ASOS), and German armed forces JTAC 1st Lt. Marius Sokol prepare equipment for close air support training at the Warren Grove Bombing Range in Ocean County, N.J. on Feb. 25, “Training assets are more spread out over the country of Germany, which makes it more difficult to work on the Combat Air Support sequence from start to finish,” said Barthel. “We know the pilots are going to show up at some point overhead of the training area, but actually meeting with them face to face is really hard because they’ll be taking off somewhere in the north of Germany and we practice in the south. You might get a phone call….that’s what amazes me.” The German JTACs are part of their country’s army, including artillery and airborne units, unlike the U.S. JTACs, who are part of the U.S. Air Force. German armed forces 1st Lt. Marius Sokol, Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) from the 131st Artillery Battalion in Weiden, Germany, performs close air support training at the Warren Grove Bombing Range in Ocean County, N.J. on Feb. 25, 2016. Master Sgt. Johannes Pszolla, JTAC with the 131st Artillery Battalion in Weiden, Germany, is stationed at Grafenwoehr Training Area and also commented on the differences in training stating, “We often work with Apache Helicopters from Spangdahlem, sometimes -A 10s, but the play time with the F-16 is not that much due to the transit time.” The American JTAC program has some similarities From left, German Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs) Master Sgt. Johannes Pszolla and 2d Lt. Michael to the German army JTACs. U.S. JTACs supplement Barthel speak to U.S. Air Force Maj. Alexis Scott, -F 16 pilot with the New Jersey Air National Guard, and Maj. Daniel Roske and Lt. Col. Albert Danza, both with the 227th Air Support Operations Squadron (ASOS), dur- the Army ground commander with a Joint Fires Ob- ing a meet and greet at the 119th Fighter Squadron. server, an Army member who can do just about everything a JTAC can do, such as passing nine line reports and lazing targets, but doesn’t have weap- ons release authority. German armed forces Capt. Sebastian Pflueger, left, and 1st Lt. Tim Jantzen, train inside the Air National Guard Advanced JTAC Training System at the 227th Air Support Operations Squadron in Egg Harbor Town- ship, N.J. on Feb. 26, 2016. From left, German armed forces Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs) 1st Lt. Marius Sokol, Capt. Sebastian Pflueger and 2d Lt. Michael German armed forces Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs) from the 5th unit/131 Artillery Battalion in Barthel, perform close air support training at the Warren Grove Bombing Range in Ocean County, N.J. on Feb. 25, 2016. Weiden and the 26th Airborne Regiment in Zweibrücken, Germany take part in close air support training at the Warren Grove Bombing Range in Ocean County, N.J. on Feb. 25, 2016. German armed forces Capt. Sebastian Pflueger, Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) with the 26th Airborne Regiment in “Having our NATO allies here, and when we go Zweibrücken, Germany, operates a range finder inside the Air National Guard Advanced JTAC Training System at the 227th Air Sup- to train with them, is really good because we port Operations Squadron. want to standardize…we all want to be on the same page, because that breaks down those barriers that we used to have, where, even the Air Force and the Army on the U.S.

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