Cope Tiger set to kick off in Thailand

  • Published
  • By Capt. Renee H. Lee
  • Cope Tiger Public Affairs
KORAT ROYAL THAI AIR BASE, Thailand (AFPN) --  More than 100 Airmen from across Pacific Air Forces are gearing up for the field training exercise Cope Tiger 2008 set to kick off Jan. 26 here and at Udon Royal Thai Air Base, Thailand.

Members of the 18th Communication Squadron from Kadena Air Base, Japan, and Airmen from the 35th Communication Squadron from Misawa AB, Japan, arrived in Thailand to set up voice lines and e-mail.

In preparing for the exercise, one of the first things to set up is communications, said Lt. Col. Don Herring, the 13th AF Air Expeditionary Wing vice commander.

"We set that up first because when the staff gets here, we want them to be able to disseminate information on a locally-related network," said Capt. Alfred Pena, a lead communications planner for Cope Tiger. "We then want phone lines set up so we can have reachback at our respective bases and any duty-related items. We also want to set up early so we can take care of troubleshooting any problems that may occur. We want to take care of that long before the actual exercise starts."

Meanwhile, Airmen and equipment from across PACAF continue to arrive, including 70 Airmen from the 51st Fighter Wing at Osan Air Base, South Korea, who arrived Jan. 22. The Air Force presence for the exercise now includes Airmen from the 25th Fighter Squadron and the 51st Maintenance Group from Osan AB, personnelists from the 35th Fighter Wing from Misawa AB and the 36th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron from Yokota Air Base, Japan.

About 800 total Airmen and Marines will participate in the exercise, operating from both Udon Royal Thai Air Base and Korat Royal Thai Air Base. The aircraft at Udon Royal Thai Air Base will include tankers, airlift support and airborne warning and control system aircraft, while fighters will operate from Korat Royal Thai Air Base. The flying war will also initiate from here.

Cope Tiger is conducted in two parts, a command post exercise that was held in December between the Royal Singapore air force and the Royal Thai air force, and the field training exercise set to begin Jan. 26. The overall exercise enhances combined readiness and interoperability, reinforces U.S. commitment to the Southeast Asian region and demonstrates the U.S. capability to project combined and joint forces strategically in a multilateral environment. 

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