1
00:00:01,179 --> 00:00:02,901
In the dead of night , special 

2
00:00:02,901 --> 00:00:04,623
operations aircraft cut across 

3
00:00:04,623 --> 00:00:07,000
contested airspace . On board , air 

4
00:00:07,000 --> 00:00:09,056
commandos tightened gear and prepare 

5
00:00:09,056 --> 00:00:11,350
for the mission ahead . But success in 

6
00:00:11,350 --> 00:00:13,406
the shadows depends on far more than 

7
00:00:13,406 --> 00:00:15,572
what happens at the edge of conflict . 

8
00:00:16,370 --> 00:00:18,426
Behind every scenario that's part of 

9
00:00:18,426 --> 00:00:21,250
ASOC's premier joint exercise known as 

10
00:00:21,250 --> 00:00:23,350
Emerald Warrior is a team of 

11
00:00:23,350 --> 00:00:25,360
intelligence professionals , cyber 

12
00:00:25,360 --> 00:00:27,770
warfare operators , and force support 

13
00:00:27,770 --> 00:00:30,103
specialists who make the fight possible . 

14
00:00:30,760 --> 00:00:32,982
It's definitely validated my role as an 

15
00:00:32,982 --> 00:00:35,093
intel officer since this is the first 

16
00:00:35,093 --> 00:00:37,260
time I've really done anything outside 

17
00:00:37,260 --> 00:00:39,427
of a classroom at this point . This is 

18
00:00:39,427 --> 00:00:41,649
my first time experiencing intelligence 

19
00:00:41,649 --> 00:00:43,816
on sort of like the , the real playing 

20
00:00:43,816 --> 00:00:45,871
field . Intelligent airmen typically 

21
00:00:45,871 --> 00:00:47,649
handle a broad mission set from 

22
00:00:47,649 --> 00:00:49,371
tracking terrorist networks to 

23
00:00:49,371 --> 00:00:51,260
understanding the capabilities of 

24
00:00:51,260 --> 00:00:53,038
adversaries despite attempts at 

25
00:00:53,038 --> 00:00:55,093
deception . During Emerald Warrior , 

26
00:00:55,139 --> 00:00:57,028
they do all of that with degraded 

27
00:00:57,028 --> 00:00:58,861
conditions , limited bandwidth , 

28
00:00:58,979 --> 00:01:01,035
simulated jamming , and intermittent 

29
00:01:01,035 --> 00:01:03,312
communications with teams in the field . 

30
00:01:03,439 --> 00:01:05,217
It's a proving ground for their 

31
00:01:05,217 --> 00:01:07,161
adaptability , mirroring what they 

32
00:01:07,161 --> 00:01:08,940
might face in austere contested 

33
00:01:08,940 --> 00:01:12,790
environments . For 

34
00:01:12,790 --> 00:01:14,901
intelligent airmen this was more than 

35
00:01:14,901 --> 00:01:16,957
planning on paper . It was providing 

36
00:01:16,957 --> 00:01:18,790
real-time support in the field , 

37
00:01:18,790 --> 00:01:21,010
ensuring ground teams stayed informed 

38
00:01:21,010 --> 00:01:23,319
and commanders had the space to make 

39
00:01:23,319 --> 00:01:26,500
decisions . Um , I think the biggest 

40
00:01:26,500 --> 00:01:28,739
misconception that people have is a lot 

41
00:01:28,739 --> 00:01:31,529
of times they Expect that we kind of 

42
00:01:31,529 --> 00:01:33,751
know everything about everything when a 

43
00:01:33,751 --> 00:01:35,862
lot of times we have little pieces of 

44
00:01:35,862 --> 00:01:37,973
knowledge and we're gonna go back and 

45
00:01:37,973 --> 00:01:40,196
sort of dig those things out . So a lot 

46
00:01:40,196 --> 00:01:42,418
of times it's not as much about knowing 

47
00:01:42,418 --> 00:01:44,473
exactly what Is being asked of you , 

48
00:01:44,473 --> 00:01:46,196
but knowing where to find that 

49
00:01:46,196 --> 00:01:48,418
information and where to go look things 

50
00:01:48,418 --> 00:01:49,973
up and who to talk to . But 

51
00:01:49,973 --> 00:01:51,973
intelligence is only powerful if it 

52
00:01:51,973 --> 00:01:53,807
reaches the fight . That's where 

53
00:01:53,807 --> 00:01:55,862
communications specialists and cyber 

54
00:01:55,862 --> 00:01:58,080
warfare operators come in , keeping 

55
00:01:58,080 --> 00:01:59,969
information flowing between teams 

56
00:01:59,969 --> 00:02:02,024
dispersed across hundreds of miles . 

57
00:02:02,589 --> 00:02:04,940
It's a layered approach . So you always 

58
00:02:04,940 --> 00:02:07,139
want to have a primary alternate and 

59
00:02:07,139 --> 00:02:09,139
contingency and even emergency . So 

60
00:02:09,139 --> 00:02:11,250
having a layered approach because you 

61
00:02:11,250 --> 00:02:12,972
never know what might happen . 

62
00:02:12,972 --> 00:02:12,779
Something will go down , but always 

63
00:02:12,779 --> 00:02:14,946
being able to switch to your alternate 

64
00:02:14,946 --> 00:02:17,112
and the contingencies , especially for 

65
00:02:17,112 --> 00:02:19,223
the commander is always vital . In an 

66
00:02:19,223 --> 00:02:21,223
era where data can move faster than 

67
00:02:21,223 --> 00:02:23,446
missiles , communications airmen enable 

68
00:02:23,446 --> 00:02:25,501
command and control across domains , 

69
00:02:25,580 --> 00:02:27,747
linking operations in the air , on the 

70
00:02:27,747 --> 00:02:30,119
ground , and at sea . Without their 

71
00:02:30,119 --> 00:02:32,063
signal , the mission goes silent . 

72
00:02:32,639 --> 00:02:35,000
Communications is what drives the uh 

73
00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:36,944
technical edge , especially at the 

74
00:02:36,944 --> 00:02:39,000
conflict level , but also , uh , for 

75
00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:41,850
efficiency and effectiveness . If intel 

76
00:02:41,850 --> 00:02:43,600
airmen are the eyes of special 

77
00:02:43,600 --> 00:02:45,767
operations and cyber warfare operators 

78
00:02:45,767 --> 00:02:47,990
are its veins , then forced support 

79
00:02:47,990 --> 00:02:50,046
specialists are the consciousness of 

80
00:02:50,046 --> 00:02:52,050
the special operations beast . They 

81
00:02:52,050 --> 00:02:54,440
track every airman , sustain every team , 

82
00:02:54,610 --> 00:02:56,721
and ensure every team member makes it 

83
00:02:56,721 --> 00:02:58,777
home at the end of the mission . The 

84
00:02:58,777 --> 00:03:00,832
biggest challenge for A1 is ensuring 

85
00:03:00,832 --> 00:03:02,943
that we have a 100% accountability in 

86
00:03:02,943 --> 00:03:04,888
such a dynamic environment . So at 

87
00:03:04,888 --> 00:03:07,110
Emerald Warrior , we're responsible for 

88
00:03:07,110 --> 00:03:08,999
tracking hundreds of airmen , our 

89
00:03:08,999 --> 00:03:10,999
partner nations , and joint service 

90
00:03:10,999 --> 00:03:13,110
components when they're constantly on 

91
00:03:13,110 --> 00:03:12,910
the move . And so through the ACE 

92
00:03:12,910 --> 00:03:15,190
enabled functions of them dispersing to 

93
00:03:15,190 --> 00:03:17,301
several locations , we're in constant 

94
00:03:17,301 --> 00:03:19,357
communication with the team leads of 

95
00:03:19,357 --> 00:03:21,357
every unit that's involved , and so 

96
00:03:21,357 --> 00:03:23,523
they're reporting their accountability 

97
00:03:23,523 --> 00:03:25,690
both before and after every mission so 

98
00:03:25,690 --> 00:03:25,339
that at any given moment we can tell 

99
00:03:25,339 --> 00:03:27,339
the COI commander exactly where his 

100
00:03:27,339 --> 00:03:28,339
people are . 

101
00:03:31,190 --> 00:03:33,389
At home station , force support is 

102
00:03:33,389 --> 00:03:35,445
responsible for caring for the whole 

103
00:03:35,445 --> 00:03:38,270
airmen and their families . Down range 

104
00:03:38,270 --> 00:03:40,350
they establish bearba sustainment 

105
00:03:40,350 --> 00:03:42,399
services such as field feeding , 

106
00:03:42,589 --> 00:03:44,509
lodging , and fitness in the most 

107
00:03:44,509 --> 00:03:47,389
austere environments . Force support is 

108
00:03:47,389 --> 00:03:50,350
a force behind the force , empowering 

109
00:03:50,350 --> 00:03:52,789
airmen to sustain mission performance 

110
00:03:52,789 --> 00:03:55,630
in support of America's air superiority 

111
00:03:55,630 --> 00:03:58,949
any time , anywhere . The biggest 

112
00:03:58,949 --> 00:04:00,893
misconception about A14 support in 

113
00:04:00,893 --> 00:04:03,116
general is that it's only in processing 

114
00:04:03,116 --> 00:04:05,060
and accountability when in reality 

115
00:04:05,060 --> 00:04:07,116
we're not hidden behind the scenes , 

116
00:04:07,116 --> 00:04:09,060
but rather everywhere you look , a 

117
00:04:09,060 --> 00:04:08,699
force support function is there . 

118
00:04:09,639 --> 00:04:11,750
Emerald warrior isn't just a test for 

119
00:04:11,750 --> 00:04:13,806
the air commandos who parachute into 

120
00:04:13,806 --> 00:04:15,750
hostile territory or fly low level 

121
00:04:15,750 --> 00:04:17,950
routes under cover of darkness . It's 

122
00:04:17,950 --> 00:04:20,006
also a proving ground for the airmen 

123
00:04:20,006 --> 00:04:22,061
who never touch the trigger but make 

124
00:04:22,061 --> 00:04:25,839
every trigger pull possible . All 

125
00:04:25,839 --> 00:04:27,506
across the special operations 

126
00:04:27,506 --> 00:04:29,980
enterprise intelligence , cyber warfare , 

127
00:04:30,109 --> 00:04:32,109
force support , and countless other 

128
00:04:32,109 --> 00:04:34,510
specialties form an invisible backbone 

129
00:04:34,720 --> 00:04:36,720
that enables the special operations 

130
00:04:36,720 --> 00:04:38,600
forces to act with swiftness and 

131
00:04:38,600 --> 00:04:41,950
certainty in complex environments . The 

132
00:04:41,950 --> 00:04:44,061
fight belongs not just to the ones on 

133
00:04:44,061 --> 00:04:46,540
the front lines or behind enemy lines . 

134
00:04:46,630 --> 00:04:48,630
It belongs to all who ensure air 

135
00:04:48,630 --> 00:04:50,510
commandos are ready to win .