When 70 Airmen from 37 Air National Guard wings participated in a Cold Weather Operations Course at Camp Ripley, Minn., three aerospace medical technicians, or medics, and a physician assistant assigned to the Minnesota National Guard’s 148th Fighter Wing were on hand, 24/7, to provide mobile medical support.

The two-week course featured a combination of classroom academics, outdoor skills practice, and an intense field training in Minnesota’s harsh winter conditions.

During the first week of classroom training, medical personnel provided students a medical-specific briefing to prepare students on Camp Ripley’s terrain, personal protective gear use, and the most common injuries seen in such a course. Medical staff and instructors also provided tips for avoiding cold injury, camp safety, and treating feet kindly.

The second week of training featured a six-day, five-night field training exercise where students rucked, worked, lived, and slept outdoors in 10-man arctic tents or shelters made with materials found in nature. Temperatures dipped below zero every night. Students also experienced high winds and snow during the field training.

Lt. Col. Casey Morris, a physician assistant assigned to the 148th Medical Group was part of the medical team who served the inaugural course in 2024, served as a planner and student in the 2025 course. “In an effort to reduce participant injury or failure, we worked closely with the security forces course planner to establish fitness standards for the students,” said Morris.

Master Sgt. Sean Prouty, an aerospace medical specialist assigned to the 148th Fighter Wing, attended the inaugural course last year as a student. This year he returned to support and treat course participants. “Knowing what these students are going through helped us prepare for this year’s larger course,” said Prouty. “Last year medics worked out of a van. This year, we set up a mobile medical unit in a generator-powered, 16-foot enclosed trailer.”

In addition to staffing the mobile medical unit trailer, medics also followed students, on foot, carrying a 40-pound Warrior Aid and Litter Kit (WALK) during all ruck marches to ensure students could be treated immediately.

“Education is critical for training in extreme conditions,” said Master Sgt. Alex Caturia, an aerospace medical specialist assigned to the 148th Fighter Wing. “Nine cases of frostnip, a less severe precursor to frostbite, were identified which were treatable in the mobile medial unit. One case of frostbite was also identified; that student was not allowed to complete the course”

Students also endured blisters, some severe, and musculoskeletal problems commonly related to rucking long-distances in snowshoes, carrying packs, in snowshoes, while harnessed to a 300-pound Ahkio Sled.

The course was comprised of mostly security forces personnel, but also included a maintenance group commander, a cybercommunications specialists, a public affairs specialist, and medical personnel. 70 students started the course on Jan. 26, 2025 and 68 graduated on Feb.8, 2025.

The Department of Defense’s Arctic Strategy states the Joint Forces should be able to conduct mission-essential tasks at extremely cold temperatures. “If the mission requires us to fight in the Arctic; we must all be ready to brawl… and winning is non-negotiable,” said Col. Brian Cooper, 177th Maintenance Group Commander, who completed the course.

“Without question, CWOC is preparing us, in realistic conditions, to be ready for that combat environment and the Medics ensured we spent our time training in the field, as opposed to being sidelined by cold-weather injuries,” said Cooper.

The CWOC serves as a CONUS-based center of excellence for training airmen cold weather military skills. The course, planned and hosted by the Minnesota National Guard’s 148th Fighter Wing, was designed to prepare service members for deployments to cold weather regions, and assist in planning missions with the goal of mitigating cold weather injuries.

Story by Audra Flanagan

148th Fighter Wing Public Affairs