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U.S. pararescue Airmen participate in Brazilian-led training exercise

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Camilla Elizeu
  • 355th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
NATAL AIR BASE, Brazil --  U.S. Air Force pararescuemen took over the skies, alongside Brazilian and Canadian military members, during Cruzeiro do Sul Exercise, here, Nov. 4 through Nov. 15.

This Brazilian-led multinational coalition aerial refueling and Combat Search and Rescue training exercise had one focus: interoperability.

During CRUZEX Airmen of all nations work together, learning from each other and building relationships. Master Sgt. Clay, 131st Rescue Squadron pararescueman, and Capt. Kyle, 131st RQS combat rescue officer, were two who brought their knowledge to the table.

"We are used to jumping with a specific group, and we have all had the same training," said Kyle. "We showed up not knowing what training they had or how proficient they are in jumping."

Participants in the exercise come with the understanding that they are all trained differently when it comes to procedures, but also know the value in participating with other nations in training scenerios.

"The goal for us is to build relations with the Brazilian CSAR team and learn from each other's tactics, procedures and strategies to gain a mutual understanding of how we all operate," said Kyle. "The first few jumps are usually designated to witness each nation's execution, eventually there is a possibility of us all jumping together."

The CSAR members will be jumping over Souza, a little village about 400 kilometers east of Natal, for a total of six days during CRUZEX.

"The purpose of jumping with other countries is to learn different techniques and expand our knowledge as well as theirs," Kyle said. "We can all learn something from each other."

Despite being a part of the same career field, there is one major obstacle all of the participants are working hard to overcome.

"We have learned to work around the language barrier and I feel the respect between all of us is growing more and more every day," Kyle said.