270th EIS Airmen Adapt Spectrum Capabilities During Combat Readiness Exercise

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270th EIS Airmen Adapt Spectrum Capabilities During Combat Readiness Exercise

PENNSYLVANIA, UNITED STATES

08.20.2026

Story by Senior Airman Matthew Bergh 

111th Attack Wing

270th EIS Airmen Adapt Spectrum Capabilities During Combat Readiness Exercise
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For the 270th EIS Airmen, the exerciseprovidedan opportunity to employ a specialized radio direction-finding capability within the squadron’s broader engineering and installation mission

Members of the Spectrum Analysis and Response Team, or SART, use their knowledge of radio frequency signals and the electromagnetic spectrumtoidentify,analyzeandlocatells to support the larger mission while gaining valuable experience applying their training outside of their normal operating environment

Tech. Sgt. Christopher Peluso, a 270th EIS team chief in the electronics section, described the radio direction-finding team as one of several capabilities its Airmen can bring to an operation. During the exercise, the small team also augmented a post-attack reconnaissance team responsible foridentifyingunexploded ordnance and assessing potential chemical and biological threats following an attack

“We tend to be a Swiss Army knife,” Peluso said

That versatility became increasinglyapparentas exercise scenarios unfolded

In one scenario, the team was tasked withlocatinga radio transmission being used by an opposing force to relay information from the installation.Airmenanalyzed the signal and determined its direction before moving with a Security Forces escort tolocateitsile the spectrum team neutralized the signal

A later scenarioprovidedthe team an opportunity to take those same skills a step further

When an exercise participant was taken hostage, the opposing force used a radio tomonitorcommunications. Members of the SART team recognized that the radio itself couldprovidea way tolocatethem

The team’s involvement in the scenario was not originally planned. Earlier in the exercise, Airmen had experimented with monitoring activity across the spectrum andidentifyingfrequencies used by handheld radios in the exercise area. When the hostage scenario developed, they recognized that knowledge could be adapted to solve a new problem

For the SART team, itdemonstratedthe importance of understanding not only how equipment is intended tooperate, but how its capabilities can be applied when circumstances change

“The SART program is relatively new,”saidSenior Airman WarrenPlanker, a 270th EIS Airman and member of the radio direction-finding team. “To see it in force, out of all of our training for once, it was pretty awesome.”
Senior AirmanPlankersaid the exercise required the team to react to short-duration signals and quicklyattemptto direction-find theiro practice while adapting to conditions in the field

Tech. Sgt. Angel Poncesaid exercises like the CRI give Airmen an opportunity to become more familiar with the full range of their RF capabilities while exploring new ways those skills could support an operation

The team regularly practices direction finding by placing transmitters in unknown locations and tasking Airmen tolocatethem on foot or from a vehicle. Applying those fundamentals to evolving exercise scenarios allowed the team to build upon familiar training while experimenting with different applications of the equipment and techniques available to them

ForCaptainPaulBoehmler,a project engineer at the 270thEIS,the exercise also highlighted the value of increasing <a href="https://healthylife7.com/latest-class-of-stead-scholars-gains-awareness-of-public-health/” title=”Latest Class of Stead Scholars Gains Awareness of Public Health”>awareness of the specialized capabilities available within an engineering installation squadron.
“You don’t know what you don’t know,” Boehmler said. “If you don’t know what’s out there, you can’t ask for support.”

Engineering installation squadrons traditionally focus on engineering and installing communications infrastructure. The SART mission adds another specialized skill set to that foundation, providing Airmen trained in the RF spectrum who can analyze signals and, whenrequired, helpdeterminewhere those signals originate

The CRI provided an environment for those Airmen to continue developing that capability while working directly alongside other mission sets

That ability to integrate became particularly important as personnel were spread across the exercise. Peluso said hisAirmenstill had their primary mission toaccomplish, but the size of the exercise required them to remain flexible andassistother teams when needed

“We’re short people here,” Peluso said. “It’sa small base.It’sa small amount of people in the exercise, and we have a job to do as EIs. Butwe’reable toassistand be agile andassistthe other teams.”

Despite the heat and demanding exercise conditions, Peluso said the willingness of Airmen to work across specialties helped keep the mission moving

“That’s the name of the game,” Peluso said. “One team, one fight.”

For the 270th EIS Airmen, the radio direction-finding teamrepresentsa specialized capability within an already diverse mission set. The exercise gave those Airmen an opportunity to sharpen their RF skills, integrate with other teams and find new applications for the training they alreadypossessed

As the SART team continues to gain experience with evolving equipment, techniques and procedures, exercises like the CRIprovidean opportunity to expand that knowledge through hands-on training. More importantly, they allow Airmen todemonstratehow a small team with specialized spectrumexpertisecan adapt its capabilities to provide commanders another tool for solving unexpected problems in the field

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Pennsylvania Air National Guard
EIS
SART
Engineering Installation Squadron
Air National Guard
Spectrum Analysis and Response Team

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