What is combat control

I talked to people who knew how to exercise, and who knew how to stay in shape. I also talked to some guys who are actually in the career field, and they helped me out. After Basic Training, Jacob entered the combat control pipeline. The pipeline involves several different types of schools: Survive, Evade, Resist, Escape SERE ; underwater egress; air traffic control; airborne and combat control. During this time, Jacob began learning how to jump out of planes.

The adrenaline's pumping, and you almost don't want to do it, but you know it's going to be cool. Airmen traversing the pipeline must become a combat diver, a Federal Aviation Administration FAA licensed air traffic controller, a Joint Terminal Attack Controller, and a free-fall parachutist, among many other skills. Once an airman graduates, he will have become one of the most dangerous humans to walk the earth. Staff Sgt.

Alaxey Germanovich recently received the Air Force Cross after saving US and Afghan soldiers that he was attached to during a battle that raged for hours in the mountains of Afghanistan in Combat Controllers are capable in many situations outside of war though. CCTs are always among the first to deploy into areas destroyed by Mother Nature in the form of hurricanes, earthquakes, and various other natural disasters. A massive earthquake brought Haiti to its knees in The only way to figure out what it truly means to be a CCT is by talking to those who have walked that path in life.

Three of them are retired with decorated careers in the US Air Force; one is still actively serving, and his name has been altered to a nickname he designated. He is currently a chief in a Special Operations Wing. Due to the nature of his work, his name has been altered to a nickname that he is commonly known by on his podcast, Ones Ready. Peaches believes a CCT is someone who can attach to any Special Operations Forces team and seamlessly work with them regardless of what branch that team is from and what their skill set is.

Then add on our partner nations. They needed air support fast, but Neidrick had to be careful not to accidentally bring that firepower on the Iraqi commandos he was trying to save. Then we utilized As orbiting overhead to put two pound bombs on the enemy location and neutralize the fighters. The bomb drop came just in the nick of time, as the Iraqi commandos were on the verge of being overrun. It just goes to show the power that a smartphone app can have at the right moment in the right hands.

CCTs are no different, except they use lasers for more than just guiding rifle bullets. Indeed, combat controllers use a pocket laser range finder to find out how far away a target or a drop zone is, or even to measure the height of telephone wires, trees, or the cloud ceiling, which are important stats for aviators.

CCTs can also use it to triangulate the distance between two other spots farther away from their position. A PLRF is essentially a high-end version of a civilian laser rangefinder, Neidrick said, but, like MK rifles and smoke grenades, CCTs use this relatively ordinary technology in creative ways for their own purposes.

It was a good thing Neidrick was there, because he worked with an Iraqi soldier to determine the rough direction the attack had come from, then used his PLRF to determine an azimuth and figure out approximately how far away the launch site was. The CCT relayed the information to an MQ-1 Gray Eagle drone flying overhead, which used its sensors to spot an enemy vehicle fleeing the spot where the missile had come from. The drone then destroyed it with a Hellfire missile. One technique CCTs use is called snaking : using their high-powered IR pointers, they draw a small circle on the ground to mark their position, then they slowly snake the IR dot across the ground towards the enemy position or the landing zone they need to mark.

Once the IR dot hits the mark, the CCTs might keep it on there, or make it blink or circle it with a figure-eight. The mission of a combat controller is to deploy, undetected, into combat and hostile environments to establish assault zones or airfields, while simultaneously conducting air traffic control, fire support, command and control, direct action, counter-terrorism, foreign internal defense, humanitarian assistance and special reconnaissance in the joint arena.

Their motto, "First There," reaffirms the combat controller's commitment to undertaking the most dangerous missions behind enemy lines by leading the way for other forces to follow. Training Combat controllers are among the most highly trained personnel in the U. They maintain air traffic control qualification skills throughout their careers; many qualify and maintain currency in joint terminal attack control procedures, in addition to other special operations skills like infiltration skills and combat diver and demolition qualifications.

Their week training and unique mission skills earn them the right to wear the scarlet beret. Andrew M.