JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. –
The CMSAF Donald L. Harlow Airman Leadership School held a field training exercise at Marine Corps Base Quantico, April 24, 2026, bringing together U.S. Airmen, Guardians and Marines in a joint environment designed to build multi-capable leaders prepared for future operations.
“This was like a full metamorphosis,” said U.S. Air Force Tech. Sergeant Samantha Henry, interim commandant of the Airman Leadership School.
Airmen and Guardians from across the National Capital Region teamed up to tackle reaction, endurance and skill-based scenarios in varied and demanding conditions. The joint training event placed students in a high-stress, controlled environment designed to push them beyond the classroom and into practical leadership application, reinforcing the Air Force’s focus on developing multi-capable Airmen.
“We talked about different concepts, [like] Agile Combat Employment [and] mission ready airmen, and how those coincide with a lot of the Marine Corps competencies,” said Henry.
The exercise, adapted from a Marine Corps Small Unit Leadership Evaluation, incorporated five scenario-based events that tested both physical endurance and mental agility. Participants conducted an emergency resupply mission on foot, a reconnaissance patrol that included reacting to an ambush, and the tactical recovery of a downed pilot followed by a multi-kilometer casualty evacuation. The training concluded with a reconnaissance of a potential landing zone for extraction.
Throughout the exercise, participants were challenged to refine their decision-making skills while applying strategic communication in complex, fast-paced situations. Scenarios such as ammunition can runs and team-based problem-solving events required clear communication and adaptability while operating as a cohesive unit. Each event reinforced the importance of critical thinking under stress—an essential skill in Agile Combat Employment and expeditionary operations.
Marine instructors played a key role in the training, offering a perspective grounded in small-unit tactics and expeditionary warfare. Their involvement provided Airmen with exposure to unfamiliar challenges while strengthening interoperability between services. The collaboration underscored the shared responsibility across the joint force to prepare for operations in contested and resource-constrained environments.
“It is important to be capable of doing other jobs around you...maybe you won't find yourself leading a patrol, but you might find yourself making tough decisions in a combat environment,” said U.S. Marine Corps Master Sgt. Micheal Zielasko, staff noncommissioned officer in charge of the Marine Corps Staff Noncommissioned Officer Leadership School.
By integrating joint-force elements, the exercise highlighted the value of collaboration across services while fostering cohesion through shared challenges. The experience also reinforced the Marine Corps philosophy that every Marine is a rifleman—paralleling the Air Force’s push toward multi-capable Airmen who can adapt and perform outside their primary specialties when mission demands require it.
“We cannot appear foreign to each other, so the more often we can get together, break bread and do these kind of things, the better we're going to be as a joint force for the Department of War,” said U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Glenn R. Ray, director of the staff noncommissioned officer academy.
The Airman Leadership School continues to use field training exercises to bridge the gap between academic instruction and operational execution, preparing the next generation of leaders to think critically, operate jointly and lead effectively in today’s increasingly complex operational environment.