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Joint Red Flag 05

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News From Joint Red Flag 05

• Aggressors putting pilots through paces • New Mexico skies host Navy, allied planes in joint exercise • Joint Red Flag bringing big picture together • USJFCOM sponsors Joint Red Flag 2005

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New JKO course improves knowledge base A new course designed in cooperation between the Joint Irregular Warfare Center and Joint Knowledge Online allows warfighters, civilians and contractors to learn about the nature of counterinsurgency. • Comment on this article at USJFCOMLive

New Mexico skies host Navy, allied planes in joint exercise

Pilots from the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy and the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force are flying together as part of a U.S. Joint Forces Command-sponsored exercise in the American southwest.

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By Air Force 1st Lt Jennifer M. Geeslin
27th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

(CANNON AIR FORCE BASE - March 23, 2005) - Local residents are seeing different uniforms around the local communities of Cannon Air Force Base and unfamiliar aircraft in the skies over Eastern New Mexico.

Over 275 Navy personnel, along with 10 F/A-18 Hornets and three E-2C Hawkeye radar planes, started arriving at the 27th Fighter Wing on March 19 for a Joint Forces Command-sponsored military exercise called Roving Sands which will run to April 1.

"Roving Sands is mostly a large-scale air war which is sponsored by the Army and exercises their air defense capabilities," said Air Force Maj. Steve Brooks, 27th Fighter Wing Roving Sands project officer.

"Roving Sands is a way for military aircraft to practice against the Patriot missile batteries. It is the way for the pilots to attack the targets and evade the Patriot, giving the Army an opportunity to train."

"The U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy and Britain's Royal Air Force are all taking part in Roving Sands and a variety of nearby bases are hosting the units who are flying in for the exercise," added Brooks.

This is not the first year Cannon has participated in this type of exercise.

"Roving Sands has existed in various forms throughout the years, mainly as a large Army exercise with Air Force support in the White Sands Missile Range," said Steve Guastaferro, 27th Fighter Wing installation deployment officer.

Unlike past Roving Sands, this year’s exercise is part of a much larger training event, Joint Red Flag, a multi-service exercise involving more than 10,000 participants at various locations across the country.

Many hours of preparation have gone into ensuring this exercise will go smoothly, both for the 524th Fighter Squadron, who will be flying in the exercise, but also for the visiting Navy personnel.

"While many hours of preparation are required for Cannon to participate in the Roving Sands exercise, it additionally takes an extraordinary effort from all base agencies to successfully host the Navy as they fly from Cannon's ramp," said Guastaferro.

"From logistics and aircraft maintenance support, to services, security, engineering, fuels, vehicles, lodging and medical support, it takes every member of the Cannon team to successfully support a deploying unit of this size in such a dynamic exercise environment," he said.

This exercise will mainly be flown at night, in the Fort Bliss, Texas area, with approximately 26 sorties leaving Cannon per day.

"We have been planning this exercise for months now to ensure it goes off without a hitch, provides the most training possible and is another outstanding opportunity for all of us to work in joint operations," concluded Brooks.