KUNSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea -- The 621st Air Control Squadron deployed to Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea, from Oct. 23- Nov. 1, to support joint training operations with the Tactical Operations Center Expeditionary system.
Stationed at Osan Air Base, the 621st ACS is evaluating their new TOC-X and its capabilities during joint training operations at Kunsan Air Base, and later provided support for Freedom Flag 25-2 from Nov. 2 - Nov. 7 at Daegu Air Base.
“Our role is to provide mobile tactical command and control from multiple locations within Korea in support of Freedom Flag,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Alex Desa, 621st ACS mobile command and control operations flight commander. “This is a means for us to give General Iverson and Seventh Air Force leadership a mobile C2 capability on the peninsula.”
This TOC-X is the Seventh Air Force’s first mobile command and control center employed on the Korean Peninsula. Designed for flexibility and mobility, the TOC-X serves as an adaptable command post for military operations, often used in remote or temporary locations. It enables Airmen to view a common operating picture to coordinate communication and direct airborne tactical operations, prioritizing weapons, sensors and fuel management to ensure aircraft effectively execute the commander’s intent during missions.
Recognizing the need for a mobile command and control center, the 621st ACS embarked on a years-long journey to brainstorm ideas, source funds and build this system mainly using commercial off-the-shelf equipment. The squadron’s TOC-X system originally started as two radios and a vision for better capabilities, but now includes high and ultra-high frequency radios and antennas, satellite communications, computer networking equipment and more.
“What’s new about this is that we’ve created an innovative idea by taking all this commercial equipment and putting it together to do a distributed command and control from anywhere on the peninsula,” explained Desa. “This is new for our squadron because we are typically only based at Osan Air Base in the AOC [Air Operations Center], but now with this capability it allows us to do our job anywhere.”
The 621st completed its first successful missions at Kunsan on Oct. 27-28 where they supported approximately 20 U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons and U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18C/D Hornets in support of the joint training exercise.
During one of the offensive counter air missions, the TOC-X controllers routed pilots to airspace safely and monitored the common operating picture to identify and relay the location of threats within the airspace. They also ensured aircraft missions adhered to pre-planned timelines; weapons were used when necessary and TOC-X debriefs were held to gain operational insights.
“This was the first time we brought it out and actually made it integrate with our fighters that took off,” said Desa. “We had really good results for the first time we employed our system.”
The mobility of the TOC-X is preparing Airmen to become more multi-capable and resilient through exposure to unfamiliar conditions. With this deployment to Kunsan, Airmen are learning to adapt and operate effectively in austere environments, building the skills and confidence needed to perform under pressure. The joint training experience serves as an essential opportunity, allowing Airmen to “get their feet wet” with the TOC-X in a controlled setting before facing similar conditions in a real-world contingency scenario.
As one of the controllers for the TOC-X, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Christopher Bowman, 621st ACS mobile command and control operations noncommissioned officer in charge, appreciates the implications and flexibility this system brings to the Korean Peninsula.
“With this system we are able to forward deploy within 24 hours or move locations to keep the mission going,” explained Bowman. “This is the way of the future because being able to set-up and tear down in 45 minutes, operate with a crew of only four people, or just move to a new location makes you extremely lethal as a controller and a squadron. Your adversary is never really going to know your next move.”
Overall, the TOC-X has integrated smoothly into Kunsan’s joint training flight operations and the 621st ACS team has high hopes for the future of this system on the Korean Peninsula.
“Morale is very high after our first mission. I think the best part is seeing the Airmen achieve results and seeing all their hard work come to fruition,” stated Desa. “The next steps after Freedom Flag are to take the lessons learned, refine and make our standard operating procedures better, and then get ready for the next peninsula-wide exercise. We are here to integrate with our joint and combined allies to make the coalition more lethal and ready."