JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- On July 12, 2024, spectators witnessed Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson’s first live regeneration-style competition. Ammo crews prepared world-class munitions, crew chiefs quick-turned four F-22 raptors, and four weapons load crews threw down in a head-to-head weapons load competition.
The Mission Generation Competition (MGC), conceptualized in the last couple of years, combines these once-separate functions into a single, cohesive event.
“Typically, when we conduct these events, we have aircraft staged in a certain location, out of the way of daily flying operations,” said Technical Sergeant Joshua Taylor, 3rd Maintenance Operations loading standardization crew member. “This event was conducted as part of daily flying operations to include Aircrew.”
The addition of aircrew and maintenance task coordination was one of many new features introduced in this quarter's MGC.
“Weapons back shop typically aren’t certified to load munitions on the aircraft,” explained Taylor. “The 3rd Wing has certified a back shop crew as part of PACAF’s initiative to employ the Multi-Capable Airman (MCA) concept. This was the first time an MCA crew participated in the competition.”
For decades, functions such as the weapons load competition and the dedicated crew chief competition have been events where crews from multiple units have faced off against one another in a friendly competition to represent their squadrons.
“There’s a lot of pride that comes from being selected as a load crew or crew chief to compete in the MGC,” Taylor mentioned. “Only the best performers from each unit are selected by their corresponding leadership to compete in the competition. If the representatives win, they earn bragging rights and hold the title until the next quarter.”
The purpose of the MGC is to showcase each career field's capability in executing the mission while also demonstrating how each piece coincides to produce combat air superiority.
During the MGC, crew chiefs from three squadrons competed against each other by performing what’s known as an “aircraft quick turn inspection” to ensure the jet was safe for its next flight.
Simultaneously, these crew chiefs coordinated with the weapons load crews, who competed in munitions loading operations. Through this teamwork, the aircraft was re-generated in the fastest way possible to get it back in the air, ready to fight!
“Pilots landed, taxied into position, and were then inspected and loaded with munitions in front of the crowd, ultimately leading to pilots accepting the aircraft and taking off again,” clarified Taylor. “Spectators, including family members, were able to see what an aircraft regeneration looks like in real-time. Many people don't see what goes into this response of generating combat airpower. This was the first time we were able to showcase it from start to finish.”