NEW LONDON, N.C. — The 145th Airlift Wing hosted the Warrior Skills Course to strengthen Airmen’s combat and leadership skills at the New London Air National Guard Base, New London, N.C., March 7-13, 2026, reinforcing warrior ethos and warfighting capabilities for modern warfare.

The Warrior Skills Course focuses on fundamental skills ranging from weapons familiarization, Tactical Combat Casualty Care, land navigation, small unit tactics and integrated base defense. A universal understanding of these skills ensures all Airmen, regardless of their career field, are capable of applying them in future conflicts.

“Most career fields do not operate on the frontline,” said Senior Master Sgt. William Puckett, Warrior Skills Course program manager. “In the event that we are attacked, they [Airmen] will have the baseline knowledge to augment security forces and defend the base.”

This week-long course follows a progressive structure, beginning with weapons familiarization and culminating through an integrated base defense exercise.

“We teach them the initial skills and they will show us how they can do it,” said Puckett. “Then we will add a layer of complexity through scenarios in the event that it happens.”

Beyond the technical skills, students were challenged to perform in roles that emphasize small-unit leadership by rotating roles regardless of rank.

“Rank does not matter,” said Master Sgt. Travis Porter, Warrior Skills course director. “If you are the team leader, you are the team leader. The students have to learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and you start to see how they work together to complete a task.”

As the course concludes, instructors emphasize the importance of applying the skills and lessons learned. For many students, this broadens their understanding of how each skill contributes towards the fundamentals of warrior ethos and combat readiness.

“My experience from this course has really changed the way I view myself because I am more prepared to respond in case we face an emergency situation,” said Staff Sgt. Moses Brooks, 145th Force Support Squadron services specialist and Warrior Skills Course participant. “We have to be prepared because at any moment, we can be called upon to fulfill our duties to the mission and each other.”

As the battlefield and character of modern warfare continue to evolve, the 145th Airlift Wing continues to train its Airmen as a world-class, ready force.