LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. -- LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. — The 19th Civil Engineer Squadron conducted a Prime Base Engineer Emergency Force (BEEF) training event at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas, Oct. 21-22, 2025, to sharpen skills under pressure.
The exercise aimed to prepare the squadron for deployments, global operations and humanitarian missions. The 19th CES plays a significant role in building and maintaining key elements of the base not only at Little Rock AFB, but also in foreign environments.
“Everything we do is to support all the infrastructure,” said U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Brooke Mackay, 19th CES engineering flight commander. “This is how we prepare our young officers, as well as our NCOs to be ready for those unknown certainties with the rising climate.”
19th CES personnel set up and defended a simulated base, completing hands-on training designed to mirror real-world operations and reaffirm their commitment to rapid global response.
Airmen dug and filled sandbags to fortify the perimeter and constructed and maintained defensive positions using shovels, vehicles, air-soft training rifles and radios.
The exercise tested the squadron with simulated drone strikes and Other Country National (OCN) interactions. It also featured scenarios that required quick, coordinated responses from Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians.
“The Airmen are tasked to set up the base, to defend their base and to make sure that the mission continues to operate,” McKay said. “Really it just allows them the opportunity to focus on some of those softer skills that they don't typically do in their daily jobs.”
The Prime BEEF training wasn’t just about excelling under pressure, and U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Theodore Gould, 19th CES electrical power production craftsman, highlighted the exercise’s focus on reinforcing unit cohesion.
“We're all working together,” Gould said. “We’re training all day together, and then we're staying overnight together, so just like a deployment.”
While the units participate in Prime BEEF training numerous times a year, alterations are made to ensure no two scenarios are ever the same.
“This is different; I've been here three years and I've never stayed [overnight] at Camp Warlord,” Gould said. “We're exercising all day, getting hands on, and then going to sleep over in the tents. That’s a little unique about this training.”
Exercises like Prime BEEF ensure that Herk Nation remains ready to build, protect and sustain operations anywhere in the world — anytime the mission calls.