Airmen forging ties with Russians

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Kenneth Fidler
  • U.S. Air Forces in Europe Public Affairs
ZHUKOVSKY AIRFIELD, Russia (AFPN) --  Since studying Russian culture during her college years in the early 1990s, Capt. Jessica Rhyne dreamed of seeing Russia and visiting Moscow.

Her dream came true Aug. 18. Not from a tour bus, but from the cockpit of her F-16 Fighting Falcon, flying high over the city and landing at this once secret air base just south of the capital.

Rhyne, a fighter pilot at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, along with more than 100 other servicemembers, represents the U.S. military in its first display of U.S. aircraft on Russian soil at the Moscow Aviation and Space Show here.

"It’s incredible for me to be here right now," she said. "I’ve always wanted to participate in something like this. But to actually arrive here in an F-16 … I never thought I’d see that day."

The U.S. military’s presence at the show demonstrates a closer military relationship with the once-long-time foe of the United States, according to participants.

“This is a very important opportunity to show the cooperation and the ever-developing ties between our two nations,” said Maj. Gen. Edward LaFountaine, the director of logistics and security assistance for U.S. European Command. “The opportunity to participate in this air show, from my perspective, is historic. It’s symbolic of a closer relationship between Russia and the U.S. This is the way forward.”

LaFountaine got a close-up look at Russian aircraft like the Su-27 and the MiG-29, two fighters parked opposite the American F-16 and F-15E Strike Eagle.

“I continue to be amazed at the capability (the Russians) demonstrate,” he said. “I’ve seen it before on film, but I’ve never seen it in person. This is very, very impressive.”

Military contacts between the two countries in recent years have forged a special relationship at a more personal level, said Maj. Kevin Thrash, the Russia desk officer at U.S. Air Forces in Europe’s international relations branch.

In May, the deputy commander of the Russian air force, Gen. Lt. Alexander Nikolaevich Zelin, met with U.S. military officials in Germany. He saw some of the behind-the-scenes work at Ramstein and Spangdahlem air bases and flew in an F-15E.

When the U.S. aircraft landed here Aug. 18, Zelin was there to greet them.

“He came all the way from Moscow to meet us,” Thrash said. “That shows you how important it was to him personally. That’s a personal initiative that translates to strong relations with the Russian air force.”

At the air show, which opens to the public Aug. 22, visitors will get a close-up look at aircraft designed to once do battle with this country’s military. Sitting wingtip to wingtip among Russian aircraft are a B-52 Stratofortress, a KC-135 Stratotanker, a C-130 Hercules, an F-15E and an F-16. Visitors also will see a daily F-15 Eagle aerial demonstration show.