Department-Level Exercise (DLE) Series

Through this series, the Department of the Air Force is preparing to be a stronger, more lethal deterrent force, to provide an advantage against competitors and adversaries across all domains, and to ensure regional stability in the Indo-Pacific and beyond.

The DLE series will incorporate multiple command exercises into one overall threat deterrence scenario, including Resolute Force Pacific (REFORPAC), Resolute Space, Mobility Guardian, Emerald Warrior and Bamboo Eagle 25-3.

It will also integrate multiple allies and partners in specific component exercises with shared interests. Partner integration is critical to U.S. efforts to ensure regional and global peace and stability and provides a decisive advantage against complex threats.

Steel Knight 25: B-Roll: 3rd MAW retrogrades forward node at Mather

3rd Marine Aircraft Wing

Video by Sgt. Brian Stippey

Dec. 11, 2025 | 4:15

U.S. Marines with Marine Wing Support Squadron 372, Marine Air Control Group 38, and Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 11, Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, retrograde from a forward arming and refueling point that supported forward operations for F-35B Lightning II assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 311, MAG-11, during exercise Steel Knight 25 at Sacramento Mather Airport, California, Dec. 11, 2025. The Marines inserted and departed the forward node with support from a U.S. Air Force KC-130J assigned to the 39th Airlift Squadron, underscoring 3rd MAW’s ability to sustain fixed-wing operations from distributed locations. Steel Knight is an annual exercise that strengthens the Navy-Marine Corps team’s ability to respond forward, integrate across domains, and sustain Marine Air-Ground Task Force readiness. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Sgt. Brian A. Stippey) More