LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. -- The 944th Fighter Wing’s Mission Ready Airman (MRA) Academy earned the approval stamp to certify its course as an Advanced Ready Training Core (ART-CORE) by Air Education and Training Command (AETC) during their April unit training assembly.
This accomplishment is a source of pride, as the 944th Fighter Wing becomes only the second wing in the Air Force to have a wing-level certified ART-CORE course, following the success of the 354th Fighter Wing at Eielson AFB, Alaska.
“Last year, my Mission Support Group team briefed me on their plan to develop a Mission Ready Airman training program, and I challenged them to get it accredited,” said Col. Todd Riddle, 944th Fighter Wing commander. “I’m incredibly proud they have built this impressive course, which prepares our combat support Airmen to deploy downrange—something we are scheduled to do in the near future—with these enhanced skill sets.”
The MRA Academy consisted of four-hour training blocks conducted on Sunday mornings during UTAs. To earn accreditation, the AETC team conducted its evaluation during the final exercise, which marked the end of the six-month program.
“Thirty-two Airmen started the program from five different squadrons, and we graduated 17,” said Maj. Talmage Hansen, MRA Academy officer in charge. “Our program is tough. The trainees had to attend every training block to receive credit, and they had to endure and pass the final exercise requirements.”
The 944th Mission Support Group built the MRA Academy in collaboration with AETC, using U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Operations School lesson plans for the ART-CORE course. However, the curriculum was only one part of building a successful program.
“We also had to find subject matter experts who became our instructor cadre,” said Senior Master Sgt. Stephen Hunter, MRA Academy program director. “Then we had to resource gear and equipment, coordinate training areas, and produce slides and materials to execute the course.
The MRA Academy focused on building and employing defensive fighting positions, manning and operating entry control points, executing shoot-move-communicate operations, providing Tactical Combat Casualty Care and care under fire, and conducting counter-improvised explosive device operations—all within a forward operating site.
Altogether, the training included 50 hours of field and flight line work, plus 20 hours of classroom instruction. Each block built upon the previous one, culminating in a realistic exercise simulating a semi-permissive deployed environment.
In addition to ART-CORE content, the MRA Academy included training deemed essential for combat support operations downrange. This included rapid airfield damage repair, pallet buildup, forklift operation, and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense.
Last year, the 944th Fighter Wing hosted a Multi-Capable Airman (MCA) Academy, based on the Air Force’s MCA initiative and fragmentation order. The framework aimed to prepare Airmen to support air and ground operations outside their primary duties, enabling them to generate, project and sustain combat power. Graduates demonstrated capabilities to protect, defend, shelter, sustain and transport in support of mission readiness.
The MCA Academy graduated 12 Airmen in 2024, and this year’s MRA Academy built upon the successes and lessons learned of the wing’s first MCA Academy.
“Last year, the MCA Academy was our beta test,” said Col. Reggie Trujillo, 944th Mission Support Group commander. “Our team, led by SMSgt. Hunter, did a stellar job building the MRA Academy ART-CORE course.”
Trujillo also emphasized the cost-effectiveness of the locally hosted training.
“For nearly the price of sending one noncommissioned officer to the U.S. Air Force Expeditionary School at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, we were able to train 17 Airmen and get them ART-CORE certified,” Trujillo said. “Having the local capability to provide this demanding training ensures our Airmen are much better prepared and combat ready to deliver expeditionary combat support in semi-permissive environments.”
Building on that success, the unit’s senior enlisted leadership highlighted how the program not only maximized resources but also elevated mission readiness through innovation and realism.
“Our team built an innovative Air Reserve Component training solution,” said Chief Master Sgt. Gregory Locke, senior enlisted leader of the 944th Mission Support Group. “We provided Airmen with warfighting skills necessary for contingency environments, while exemplifying the warrior ethos and focusing on lethality through realistic training. But we’re not finished—we plan to offer this training to other mission partners.”
As the 944th Fighter Wing celebrates this milestone, Hunter emphasized the support they received from local partners.
He credited the 56th Fighter Wing Mission Support Group at Luke AFB and the U.S. Army’s Fort Huachuca Training Support Center in southern Arizona for their critical contributions.
The 944th Fighter Wing’s MRA Academy is the first certified ART-CORE wing-level program in the continental United States and the first in the Air Reserve Component.
“Some units talk MRA. We get after it here in the 944th,” Trujillo said.