MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- Constructing an entire airstrip usually takes three to six months to accomplish, but 27 Marines and sailors from Marine Wing Support Squadron 171 deployed to Pohakuloa Training Area on the big island of Hawaii in support of exercise Lava Viper built one almost a week.
MWSS-171’s engineer detachment left here Dec. 18 and constructed the airstrip to enable unmanned aerial system operations during Lava Viper 10.1.
Exercise Lava Viper is a pre-deployment exercise for Marines preparing to deploy in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
“We were tasked by (1st Marine Air Wing) to plan and execute the construction of the airstrip,” said Maj. Andre Williams, the operations officer for MWSS-171.
The 750 by 85 foot airstrip was constructed by Marines and sailors who were conducting airstrip operations for the very first time.
“With the use of $250,000 worth of civilian contracted heavy equipment ranging from water distribution trucks to front-end loaders, the runway was created in nine working days,” said 1st Lt. Milton Rehbein, the MWSS-171 engineering officer.
From conception to execution, the entire operation was finished in less than a month. “This was an unprecedented event,” said Williams. “No one has ever built an unmanned aerial vehicle or UAS airstrip in the area.”
Heavy equipment operators, combat engineers, supply, motor transportation, field mess, medical, explosive ordinance disposal and heavy equipment mechanics all played a vital role in getting the mission accomplished.
EOD technicians drove water trucks while combat engineers performed the dust abatement process. All 27 Marines and sailors took the motto “one team, one fight” to heart and learned new skills to help better accomplish the mission.
“No matter what your job was, we were all out there doing something,” said Lance Cpl. Devin Lynch, a food service specialist.
The help of the Bradshaw Army Airfield staff also played a critical role in the success of the construction.
They provided administrative and operational support to enable the completion of the project.
Marines and sailors spent every day from dusk to dawn to make sure the mission was accomplished.
The drafting and survey process was a very long and arduous process, and Marines repeatedly rechecked on all of their points to ensure accuracy.
The hard work put in during the Christmas and New Year’s holiday paid off on Jan. 24 when the first RQ-7 Shadow, an unmanned aerial vehicle, was successfully launched and recovered utilizing the newly constructed airstrip.
The airstrip will not only be remembered for the hard work of these 27 Marines and sailors during such a condensed timeline, but also for the fact “Cooper’s Airstrip” was created in honor of an MWSS-171 engineering officer who was injured during an Operation Enduring Freedom deployment, 1st Lt. Timothy Cooper.