Pilots get taste of combat during Red Flag-Alaska

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Anthony Davis
  • Red Flag-Alaska Public Affairs
EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska (AFPN) --  The exercise is Red Flag, but it is in Alaska this time, not Nevada.

There are similarities -- both exercises focus on advanced tactical training for aircrew members against air and surface threats. Both employ an aggressor force in the air and from the ground. Both have similar training objectives designed to provide the closest experience possible to combat.

There are differences, however, between the Pacific Alaskan Range Complex and Southern Nevada desert that provide a unique perspective for aircrew training at either location.

"The PARC and Alaska have some unique capabilities like the Nellis ranges do," said Brig. Gen. David Scott, 354th Fighter Wing commander. "...we need to take advantage of these capabilities and build our exercises around the objectives the units request and what each of these two ranges bring to the fight."

These capabilities will help aircrews when they face future conflicts.

"There are different environmental conditions up here and the terrain is different," said Brig. Gen. William Rew, 57th Wing commander at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., who participated along with his wing's aggressors in Red Flag-Alaska last week. "It looks different to the pilot's eyes, on their targeting pods and on their radar. It's a different training venue. We may be fighting now in the desert but in our next war we may be fighting in a different environment."

As the 57th Wing commander, General Rew's people routinely ensure that exercise participants at the Nellis range receive quality training. The wing supports the U.S. Air Force Weapons School and provided elements of the aggressor force during Red Flag-Alaska 07-02.

Red Flag originated after the Air Force learned in Vietnam that most of its combat losses occurred during a pilot's first few sorties. The exercise is designed to give young pilots and aircrew their first 10 combat sorties using the walk-crawl-run approach, stepping up the level of threat and level of difficulty.

"It's a large force-on force exercise," General Rew said. "It's not close air support, it's not doing airpower in urban settings with folks on the ground. It's our airpower against theirs and we're trying to hit targets."

Eielson had previously hosted Cope Thunder, Pacific Air Forces' simulated combat airpower employment exercise. The exercise was expanded into Red Flag last year to allow for additional combat training opportunities.

"A lot of people want to come to Red Flag-Nellis and we just don't simply have enough range time and airspace time for them to do that," General Rew said. "By raising up the level of the Cope Thunder exercise to the Red Flag level it enables many more people and countries to participate in a Red Flag experience."

The challenge of changing Cope Thunder into a Red Flag exercise fell on the 353rd Combat Training Squadron, which moved under the 354th Fighter Wing when the exercise became a Red Flag.

"We will continue to build the target array within the PARC, increase the simulation of threat and work some of the airspace issues," said General Scott. "With the closeness of Forts Wainwright and Richardson, we see a capability of further integrating the Army into our exercises."

During Red Flag-Alaska 07-02, several Army helicopters supported the combat search and rescue portion of the exercise. Integrating other services is just the beginning, according to the general.

"We are working with the Nellis Adversary Tactics Group and the Space Warfare Center to incorporate all spectrums of warfare -- air, space and cyberspace," General Scott added.

The end result will be two Red Flag exercises where aircrews may face different environments while seeking similar objectives.

"It's good to have different terrain and environmental conditions to fight in," said General Rew.

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