Completed Military Operations Longer writeup

TACP

Oct 2013 - Apr 2015

118th Air Support Operations Squadron

TACP Trainee

Trained with the North Carolina Air National Guard's 118th Air Support Operations Squadron in the Tactical Air Control Party pipeline, gaining foundational exposure to close air support, joint fires coordination, radio communications, and air-ground integration before transitioning to the 235th ATCS.

Worth noting

A few things I would call out

  1. Trained in the TACP pipeline with exposure to close air support, joint fires, and air-ground integration.
  2. Developed radio communication and joint operations fundamentals later used in airfield operations work.
  3. Transitioned from the 118th ASOS into the 235th ATCS in April 2015.

01 // What was getting in the way

Building effective air-ground integration requires personnel who understand both the ground maneuver environment and the capabilities and limitations of air power, knowledge that requires structured training in the TACP discipline.

02 // What I did

I joined the 118th ASOS and completed training activities within the TACP pipeline.

The experience focused on:

  • close air support procedures
  • radio communications across joint nets
  • the operating environment TACPs work in alongside Army ground forces
  • the discipline required to connect ground maneuver needs with air support capabilities

03 // What changed

Established the air-ground coordination and communications foundation that supported my transition into airfield operations and air traffic control in April 2015. The training strengthened mission-context awareness that continued to inform later expeditionary, landing zone, and combat airspace responsibilities.