Gung ho! TACPs conduct training with Whiteman aircraft
By Mrs. Brye Steeves, 509th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
/ Published May 29, 2018
WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. -- They are a pilot’s eyes and ears on the ground.
They are TACP, or tactical air control party. These Airmen are often embedded with the U.S. Army but communicate with personnel from all branches of the armed forces, which includes calling in airstrikes and helping coordinate air support missions with pilots.
About 20 TACPs from installations around the country, such as Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Fort Drum, New York; Fort Bliss, Texas; Moody AFB, Georgia; and Kirtland AFB, New Mexico, spent a week training at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri with B-2s, A-10s, UH-60s and T-38s, as well as supporting agencies. Training was conducted in the area surrounding Whiteman AFB that simulated battlefields and enemy targets.
The TACPs primary responsibilities are to deploy to battlefield forward areas and support other branch units; coordinate air and field artillery fire support; and provide Air Force expertise that is essential to joint combat operations.
This type of joint training at Whiteman is unique due to the diverse weapon systems based at this instillation that make up Team Whiteman. Additionally, the 509th Bomb Wing is the first in Air Force Global Strike Command to formally commit to future training with the 93rd Air Ground Operations Wing as part of the implementation of close air support and joint terminal attack controller integration for a multi-domain fight. A handful of these joint operations at Whiteman first started a year and a half ago and will continue being conducted several times a year.