Source: United Kingdom – Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force aviators have joined counterparts from the United States, Canada and Australia on Exercise Red Flag Nellis 25-1, considered one of the world’s toughest air combat training environments, to hone their war-fighting skills.
RAF personnel, including Rivet Joint aircrew from 51 Squadron, Air Operations Controllers from 19 Squadron and 20 Squadron, along with eight Typhoons and a Voyager aircraft are participating in the exercise, running 27th January to 14th February at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, United States.
Exercise Red Flag was established by United States Air Force in 1975, after the Vietnam War revealed the first 10 combat missions to be the most dangerous for aircrews. The first 10 missions of a modern air campaign are recreated in Red Flag to provide an invaluable experience for all participants.
Generations of RAF aviators have attended this exercise, and it continues to evolve and reflect the threats and challenges faced on modern operations. Missions are conducted to the nearby Nevada Test and Training Range, and further to the southwest of the United States where there is integration with maritime units.
This year’s exercise involves approximately 3,000 personnel and up to 150 aircraft over 15 different locations, conducting large force employment missions in a range of scenarios.
The exercise is renowned for its use of ‘aggressor’ forces including simulated enemy fighter aircraft, ground-based radars and simulated surface-to-air missiles – and even cyber and space-based elements that simulate threats for each mission.
The Tactical Command and Control team’s role is to manage and control all of those aircraft, alongside other elements and units working in the ground, maritime, cyber and space-based domains, to accomplish the mission. The scale and complexity of Exercise Red Flag Nellis cannot be replicated elsewhere, which makes it an outstanding place to build experience and reinforce a close working relationship with the United States, Australia and Canada.