66th SFS collaborates with state police for tactical training exercise

HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass.-- Airmen from the 66th Security Forces Squadron trained with the Massachusetts State Police Special Tactical Operations team at the base dormitories June 9-10, 2024. 

The training provided a wealth of field experience, which benefited the airmen, said Air Force Tech. Sgt. William H. Boyden, noncommissioned officer in charge of the 66th SFS. 

This was the second year that the 66th SFS and the STOP team worked together, with last year’s training focused on general tactics. We hope to do this again next year, said Boyden; any interaction with outside law enforcement is a positive interaction for the 66th SFS.

The training consisted of two parts, including a morning lecture held in a classroom. The team discussed active shooter scenarios such as the shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Church in Charleston, South Carolina June 17, 2015, and a shooting in San Bernardino, California, Dec. 2, 2015, said Trooper James C. O’Donnell, a STOP team member. 

During the afternoon, the teams participated in field exercises with a scenario involving an unstable person with a firearm threatening people in a confined area. The dorms were used as the scenario location, which kept the scenario realistic as situations such as this could occur in dorms, offices, or schools, said O’Donnell. 

“Unfortunately, it’s not a question of ‘if’, but ‘when’, something like this happens again,” said Trooper O’Donnell. “We have learned, however, that the loss of life in these kinds of situations can be limited with a professional response.” 

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