CHEHALIS, Wash. — The Chehalis-Centralia Airport became part of a military training exercise on Wednesday.
The joint operation between the Army and Air Force to train on refueling Black Hawk, Chinook and Apache helicopters typically take place at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
Soldiers said moving to an unfamiliar location breaks up the routing and helps prepare them for working in different locations and under different conditions.
"We're used to doing most missions on a comfortable area on JBLM, but being here in Chehalis, it offers us an opportunity to conduct these missions in an uncomfortable and unfamiliar territory," one military member said.
The military has used the runway in Lewis County before. However, that hasn't happened since the COVID-19 pandemic started.