Warfighter Seminar: Pacific Humanitarian Assistance / Disaster Response Tabletop Exercise
Monday, May 12, 2025 | 1:00 - 5:00 p.m. ET
Room: TBD | Kentucy International Conference Center
$99 for SAME Industry Members | $129 for Industry Non-Members | Free for Government Attendees
Register Early, Space is Limited.
Already registered for JETC?
Email registration@same.org to request the Warfighter Seminar be added to your registration.
Schedule
- Optional, but Highly Recommended: Webinar: Tuesday, April 29 | 3:00-4:00 p.m. ET
- Pre-conference TTX: Room TBD | Monday, May 12 | 1:00-5:00 p.m. ET
While combat operations are often the focus of U.S. military operations in the INDOPACIFIC, humanitarian assistance, disaster response (HA/DR) operations are required almost every year. These operations are conducted to support U.S. territories and when asked, other nations. The inherent nature of HA/DRs are complex because of the immediate requirements to save and protect human lives in a highly dynamic environment. Conducting a HA/DR on remote islands with international politics in full play and near peer competitors nearby further complicates planning and conducting operations.
This tabletop exercise (TTX) will allow participants to discuss the tactical challenges in planning, sustaining, and then transitioning HA/DR operations. In the scenario, both American Samoa and Samoa have experienced a natural disaster, and each has requested U.S. support. American Samoa’s Governor, as a U.S. territory, asked the U.S. President directly for assistance. Samoa, being an independent country, asked the U.S. Ambassador to Samoa for assistance.
The TTX will begin with a scenario setting presentation for the HA/DR event including presentation of key players and an outline of exercise goals and objectives. Guidance will be provided from respective engineer leads.
Participants will then plan for the HA/DR operation on both islands starting with stabilization operations. Then, the planning will shift to the longer-term recovery and reconstruction efforts, with stakeholders discussing the process and authorities required to plan, program, procure and turn over recovery projects in a post disaster environment. The participants will present their combined operational plan to the other groups at end the TTX.
Additionally, this TTX with Joint and Service Engineer operators and planners from across the DoD with interagency representatives and engineer industry representatives, will examine whole of engineer force capabilities and capacity to respond, the processes and mechanisms for organizing the response, plus explore the supporting vs. supported roles of USG Interagency responders. While this is primarily a tactical level exercise, findings, outcomes and lessons learned will be briefed to the SAME Executive Advisory Group and potentially provided to the JOEB Coordination Group by the Warfighter Engineering COI.
Tabletop Exercise Objectives:
- Examine the lanes, roles and missions of mutually supporting separate USG agencies in providing an integrated US Government interagency response to a HA/DR requirement, with both domestic and international requirements.
- Describe the capabilities and restrictions of Department of Defense support of HA/DR to International and U.S. Territories, utilizing a specific significant natural disaster as the backdrop scenario for facilitated discussion.
- Describe the tools, instruments, and standing response contracts available through military commands to integrate an industry response, along with troop units, to provide assistance to OFDA or FEMA in emergency situations.
- Drive discussions on response options, authorities, C2, logistics, engineering and access to / use of both military and contractor solutions to disaster response requirements.
Moderator: Col. Matthew Beverly, USAF (Ret.), AECOM
Panelists (subject to change)
Lt. Col. Todd Graham, P.E., USAFR, Vice President, GHD
Capt. Kenneth Howard, USA
Capt. Connor Egbert, USAF
Capt. Aaron Hall, USAF
Who Should Attend
Warfighter 2025 is primarily intended as a training exercise for company-grade officers (CGOs), non-commissioned officers NCOs) and industry professionals who support them. While the scenario is tailored for CGOs and NCOs, Warfighter 2025 offers opportunities for any professional involved in or contemplating overseas, relatively remote operations supporting military operations.
