Global Mobility Exercise tests logistics in the future

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Laurie A. Arellano
  • US Air Force Expeditionary Center
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J --  

Mobility experts convened at the USAF Expeditionary Center have wrapped up Exercise Global Mobility, Air Mobility Command's portion of the Chief of Staff of the Air Force's Title X Wargame which helps ensure the US Air Force remains able to respond quickly and decisively anywhere we're needed.

GLOMO is based at the Expeditionary Center and brings together subject matter experts from across the command to validate the mobility piece of a contingency scenario as part of a global wargaming exercise.  The purpose of the exercise is to project problems and validate scenarios ten years out into the future using the force structure tool kit projected to be available at that time.

"Our objective here is to validate the existing Time Phased Force Deployment Data (TPFDD) and stress it," Verdon said.  "We want to see where we are as a mobility force."

This year's exercise focused on an event in the Pacific theater and the AMC portion included planning for coalition support.  The multi-service exercise included partner nation members who helped AMC plan for the use of airfields and aircraft in future contingency situations.

"GLOMO is focused on resiliency," said Lt. Col. Pat Verdon, AMC Game Director.  "We're looking at what we could actually face in real contingency, it's not fairy dusted."

GLOMO tests AMC's ability to support future mission requirements under an evolving scenario.  The exercise evaluated the forces, capabilities and platforms, including aircraft projected to be in the inventory, that AMC expects to be able to deliver to the warfighting commander ten years from now. 

The exercise also examines limiting factors such as distance and degraded operations to continue to build lessons learned that improve planning and deployment of military forces.

"Any planning factor has challenges and we're looking at how to anticipate and plan for issues that could impact a contingency response plan," said Brig. Gen. Gregory Ferguson, Director of Mobility Forces (DIRMOBFOR).  "We build a significant set of lessons learned based on scenarios developed and responses analyzed by the subject matter experts in these exercises."

In addition, GLOMO helps educate non-mobility personnel on the capabilities and stressors on the mobility piece of contingency response and validates what the Director of Mobility Forces delivers to the Combined Forces Air Component Commander during a contingency response.

Ultimately, the exercise leads to strategic planning that ensures we retain our ability to provide rapid Mobility Air Forces support to support contingencies across the globe.

General Ferguson said the exercise has been a successful learning experience for those involved, and said he is confident the planning that will take place will ensure the Air Force continues to maintain its mobility capability and efficiency.

"We're making possible the logistics it takes to project the military effectively anywhere in the world."