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27 May 21. £274m training boost for RAF. Pilots and engineers who operate the UK’s C-17 Globemaster aircraft are to benefit from world-leading interactive training, following a £274m contract award. Awarded for the next 19 years, the contract with Boeing Defence UK will provide unique synthetic training courses for RAF personnel who operate the aircraft until 2040 and will support around 30 UK jobs at the International Training Centre (ITC) in Farnborough. Alongside the continued training for pilots on the interactive C-17 flight simulators, from 2023 RAF trainees will also benefit from two new pieces of equipment in a purpose-built facility. Maintainers will be provided with engineering training so they can diagnose faults and practice repairs without having to work on the live aircraft.
This multi-million pound investment is supported by the £24bn uplift on defence spending over the next four years, announced by the Prime Minister in November. With a focus on synthetic training, the contract also builds on the commitment outlined in the recent Defence Command Paper and utilises the latest technology to simulate a range of scenarios and deliver unparalleled training.
Defence Minister Jeremy Quin said, “Ensuring we have a modernised Armed Forces capable of tackling future threats begins with access to world-class training for all of our personnel.
This £274m investment will allow our air crews to operate this aircraft to its highest capability and maintain critical defence outputs and will extend our use of modern synthetic training techniques.
The C-17 aircraft plays a vital role in transporting personnel and cargo around the world and to undertake this activity safely air crews are required to undergo comprehensive training, best delivered in a synthetic environment. The simulation training is based on real-life scenarios in a secure setting, enabling personnel to experience situations that can’t easily be replicated when training on live aircraft. By moving training away from live aircraft, they can be freed up to deliver outputs essential to defence operations and also reduces emissions as live flying exercises are no longer required.”
Director Air Support DE&S Richard Murray said, “The new contract will deliver world class training and associated equipment for RAF personnel operating C-17 over the next 19 years. This will provide those personnel with the knowledge and skills needed to get the very best out of the aircraft for UK Defence. The RAF is leading the way in the use of synthetic training across defence and is already undertaking approximately 50% of all Combat Air training on synthetic devices. By 2040, the RAF expects to conduct 80% of all training synthetically.”
Air Mobility Force Commander, Air Commodore David Manning, “This new synthetic training service will provide assured aircrew and maintainer training through to the out of service date of the C-17. The training service will support C-17 global operations, increasing fleet availability and enhancing the training delivered to our personnel through the introduction of cutting-edge synthetic training equipment.
With this service, the RAF will enter a new phase of UK optimised C-17 training, while working with our industry partner to promote UK prosperity and the generation of UK based jobs.”
Recently celebrating 20 years in RAF service, the expected out-of-service date of the C-17 is 2040, for which this contract with Boeing Defence UK will see through to the end.
Forming part of the RAF’s contribution to Integrated Force 2030, the C-17 is capable of carrying large and complex pieces of equipment, including a Chinook helicopter – easily transporting over 45,000kg of freight more than 8,300km. (Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
26 May 21. RAN joins French Navy for exercise through South China Sea. HMAS Parramatta has rendezvoused with two Marine Nationale vessels for a collaborative exercise through the South China Sea.
Anzac Class frigate HMAS Parramatta has joined French Navy Marine Nationale vessels FS Tonnerre and FS Surcouf of the Jeanne d’Arc Task Group for a cooperative passage through the South China Sea.
This follows participation in Exercise Arc21, with all three vessels joining land, maritime and air forces from Japan and the US for training exercises earlier this month.
Training activities included communication exercises, replenishment-at-sea approaches, maritime manoeuvres and joint-flying serials using HMAS Parramatta’s MH-60R and Tonnerre’s Panther helicopters.
Commanding Officer Parramatta Commander Anita Nemarich said the exercise provided partner nations with the opportunity to strengthen interoperability.
“The Royal Australian Navy and the French Marine Nationale have enjoyed multiple opportunities to work together in the region recently,” CMDR Nemarich said.
“It is great to be able to continue on the tremendous work of HMA Ships Anzac and Sirius who worked with the Jeanne d’Arc Task Group recently during Exercise La Perouse, building our interoperability as like-minded nations.”
Commander of the Jeanne D’Arc Task Group and Commanding Officer Tonnerre Captain Arnaud Tranchant added: “Operating in-company with the Australian Navy, with whom we share the same commitment to freedom of navigation, means reinforcing our ties and our capability to operate together with the same purpose.
“It is also a great occasion for our naval cadets to be working with a partner Navy they will very likely encounter again in their future postings.”
HMAS Parramatta’s collaboration with the French Navy forms part of a two-month deployment to southeast and northeast Asia alongside HMAS Ballarat.
HMAS Ballarat recently joined Operation Argos – Australia’s contribution to international efforts to monitor and deter illegal shipments of sanctioned goods to North Korea, as part of United Nations’ Security Council Resolution 2397. (Source: Defence Connect)
24 May 21. USAF and Army demonstrate joint capabilities during Mobility Guardian. The USAF AMC is showcasing several capabilities during the multinational Mobility Guardian readiness exercise.
The US Air Force’s (USAF) Air Mobility Command has partnered with the Kentucky and Michigan Army National Guard (ANG) to transport and deploy the M142 high-mobility artillery rocket system (HIMARS).
The M142 is being deployed during the Mobility Guardian multinational readiness exercise, which includes AMC’s first large-scale training on agile combat employment (ACE).
It sets the standard for the role mobility aircraft plays in projecting the joint force and intends to validate readiness and test rapid global mobility capability.
The exercise allows airmen and soldiers to jointly work and learn more about each other’s individual branch processes and expand upon capabilities.
40th Airlift Squadron pilot captain Brian Vos said: “This exercise is all about demonstrating the ability to integrate with our joint partners and respond to threats in an expeditious and flexible manner based on a dynamic and complex battlespace.”
During phase one, the objective was ‘to rapidly deploy the all-terrain weather precision fire support system to a simulated austere location’ via C-17 Globemaster III and C-130J Super Hercules airlift.
Kentucky Army National Guard field artillery crew member 623rd Field Artillery Regiment 1st Battalion staff sergeant Nathan Adams said: “Working with the Air Force really puts us in a different playground that makes us more mobile and agile.
“With the support of mobility aircraft, we expand our range of employment exponentially.”
HIMARS is a highly mobile artillery rocket system offering the firepower of MLRS on a wheeled chassis. It was developed during the late-1990s for the US Army.
The nearly two-week exercise is set to conclude on 27 May.
In October 2019, AMC held the Mobility Guardian exercise at Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) in Washington. (Source: airforce-technology.com)
25 May 21. AMC tankers test advanced tactics and concepts during Mobility Guardian 21. USAF’s Air Mobility Command tankers test communications systems and deterrence capabilities during Mobility Guardian 21.
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US Air Force (USAF) has announced that airmen and tankers from across Air Mobility Command (AMC) participated in the Mobility Guardian 2021 exercise to test advanced tactics and concepts at Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport.
The nearly two-week exercise, which started on 1 May, is set to conclude on 27 May.
The exercise allows airmen and soldiers to jointly work and learn more about each other’s individual branch processes and expand upon capabilities.
Aircrew and mission planners operating military aerial refuelling aircraft KC-135 Stratotankers, air-to-air refuelling tanker aircraft KC-10 Extenders and the KC-46 Pegasus multi-mission aircraft are participating in the readiness exercise.
During the multinational exercise, the aircrew will test specialised computers and communication systems that allow rapid data sharing to ensure strategic deterrence.
Mobility Guardian is the USAF’s ‘largest and longest exercise that ensures readiness’ to move military workforce and equipment during combat operations.
28th Mission Generation Squadron commander and 54th Air Refueling Squadron operations director lieutenant colonel Benjamin Davidson said: “What we’re able to do here is innovate ourselves, think our way through problems as we’re actually being presented with them.
“We’ve got young crews out here that think in new ways, think outside the box and come up with some things others might not have thought of.”
Mobility Guardian training exercise provides AMC’s tanker force with an opportunity to enhance its readiness capabilities and enables ‘nuclear capabilities’ with fewer resources in any environment.
In October 2019, AMC held the Mobility Guardian exercise at Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) in Washington. (Source: airforce-technology.com)
24 May 21. UK, US and French airforces take part in exercise ‘Atlantic Trident.’ The UK RAF Typhoons, US Air Force F-35As and French Rafale fighters are taking part in exercise Atlantic Trident 2021.
The airforces of the UK, US and France are participating in the joint, multinational tri-lateral field training exercise, Atlantic Trident 2021.
The British Royal Air Force’s (RAF) Typhoons from XI(F) Squadron are working alongside the US Air Force (USAF) F-35A Lightning II joint strike fighters and French Rafale fighters in the exercise.
Hosted by France, Atlantic Trident is being conducted at Mont-de-Marsan Air Force Base over the south-west and central part of the country from 17 to 28 May.
The exercise provides an opportunity for the participating aircrews to develop skills in ‘working together, exploiting the strengths of the aircraft and developing the ability to operate as one team’.
It marks a milestone in RAF’s history as the first international exercise to see the participation of jets from the new UK’s aircraft carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth.
During the exercise, RAF Typhoons will join daily events in the sky by flying from their home base at RAF Coningsby supported by RAF Voyager Tankers from RAF Brize Norton air station.
In the second week of the exercise, the RAF F-35B Lightning jets of 617 (Dambusters) Squadron from HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier will join the other platforms.
RAF IX (F) Squadron pilot flight lieutenant Smyth said: “By flying together on Exercise Atlantic Trident, the US, France and UK will be able to deliver increased effect, as we will be able to better understand each other and come together to achieve optimum interoperability.
“Training together is really important because it helps us to understand the similarities of our respective air arm, the strengths of each of our fighter aircraft, and how we can work together to improve, both technologically and operationally in terms of the effect we are trying to achieve.”
101 Squadron Voyager tankers will provide fuel for all participating aircraft. (Source: airforce-technology.com)
24 May 21. Philippine Air Force sends pilots, maintenance crew to Turkey to train on T129B ATAK helicopter. The Philippine Air Force (PAF) announced on 22 May that it is sending pilots and maintenance crew to Turkey to undergo training on the Turkish Aerospace (TA) T129B ATAK helicopter: an indication that the PAF’s acquisition of the twin-engined combat rotorcraft is progressing.
The PAF’s ‘15 Strike Wing’ announced via its Facebook account that it held a ‘send-off ceremony’ for future T129 pilots and crew, adding that training will begin this month at TA’s facilities in Ankara and be completed in August. No further details were provided but the announcement was made after Serdar Demir, TA’s director of marketing and communications, said on 18 May that the US State Department had recently approved the export license for the US-made LHTEC CTS800-4A engines that power the helicopter. This came after TA general manager Temel Kotil told the CNN Türk news channel in April that production of the PAF helicopters would begin “in the coming months”. Janes understands that the PAF is aiming to acquire a minimum of six T129B helicopters. Speaking to Janes on condition of anonymity, Turkish defence sources referred to the engine export approval as a “done deal”, adding that TA is now only awaiting “an official writing” from Washington. They also noted that Demir had “ensured the export approval” after making several visits to Washington. The Philippine Department of National Defense (DND) has repeatedly stated that it wants to procure the T129 ATAK but Manila had also sought guarantees from Turkey about the platform’s export availability. (Source: Jane’s)
22 May 21. Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group joins up with British carrier ahead of its maiden deployment. Ships from the U.S. Navy’s Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group, the Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth Carrier Strike Group and the French and Norwegian navies transit the Atlantic Ocean May 17. The Queen Elizabeth, with U.S. Marine F-35Bs embarked, begins its maiden operational deployment Sunday. (MC2 Brenton Poyser/Navy)
As the British Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier Queen Elizabeth and its carrier strike group prepares to set off on its maiden operational deployment, a seven-month jaunt around the world, it was joined in the North Atlantic Ocean by U.S. Navy ships and Marines taking part in the Ragnar Viking exercise .
“As a final act of expert planning and coordination, about 9,000 military members from several NATO nations converged on one spot in the North Atlantic today,” said U.S. Navy Capt. Darren Nelson, commodore of Amphibious Squadron Four, in a Navy news release.
The joint exercise Monday featured 15 ships from four NATO countries, including the UK Carrier Strike Group and the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group with its embarked 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, according to the release.
The convergence of exercises Strike Warrior, led by Queen Elizabeth, and the U.S.-led Ragnar Viking demonstrated NATO’s ability to coordinate major, separate operations at the same time.
“HMS Queen Elizabeth and the USS Iwo Jima represent a substantial concentration of maritime-based air power,” said Royal Navy Capt. Angus Essenhigh, commanding officer of the Queen Elizabeth, in the release. “With the involvement of warships from four NATO members, including HMS Albion, our rendezvous in the North Atlantic demonstrates the collective strength of the Alliance.”
A landing craft, air cushion, attached to Assault Craft Unit 4, transits alongside the amphibious assault ship Iwo Jima May 17. Iwo Jima is underway in the Atlantic Ocean with Amphibious Squadron 4 and the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit as part of the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group. (MC2 Brenton Poyser)
Exercise Strike Warrior 21, which involved more than 20 warships, three submarines and 84 aircraft, served as a final test for the UK Carrier Strike Group before it leaves Sunday on its first operational deployment to the Mediterranean, Indian Ocean and Asia Pacific. F-35s
“Military assets from 10 different nations took part in the exercise off the coast of North West Scotland, which saw ships from a range of partner nations deploy a range of advanced threats against the group,” according to a UK Ministry of Defence press release. “Our state-of-the-art F-35 fighter jets conducted missile firings during the exercise, marking the first time British jets have done so at sea for 15 years.” (Source: Military Times)
21 May 21. Biggest Navy Exercise in a Generation Will Include 25,000 Personnel Across 17 Time Zones. Forty-two ships and submarines representing 15 international partner nations maneuver into a close formation during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) Exercise 2014. (U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Shannon Renfroe)
Tens of thousands of sailors and Marines will participate in the biggest U.S. naval exercise in a generation to test how the services will fight across vast distances as they prepare for possible conflict with China or Russia.
Aircraft carriers, submarines, planes, unmanned vessels, and about 25,000 personnel will participate in Large Scale Exercise 2021, which will begin in late summer. The massive exercise will span 17 time zones with sailors and Marines in the U.S., Africa, Europe and the Pacific joining.
Live forces will participate in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
“LSE is more than just training, it is leveraging the integrated fighting power of multiple naval forces to share sensors, weapons, and platforms across all domains in contested environments, globally,” said Adm. Christopher Grady, commander of U.S. Fleet Forces, told Military.com in an email.
The exercise, he added, will be the first in a series “that will continue to push the envelope of what it means to be the superior maritime force.”
The Navy and Marine Corps are working more closely after decades of missions focused on the Middle East. As competition for influence builds with China and Russia, the Department of the Navy is shifting its focus from a largely land-based fight against terror groups to deterring aggression.
Three dozen units will participate in physical portions of the large-scale exercise, while more than 50 will join the exercise remotely, said Lt. Cmdr. Tabitha Klingensmith, with U.S. Fleet Forces Command. Participating units will include personnel from all three Marine expeditionary forces and sailors from the Navy’s Second, Third, Sixth, Seventh and Tenth fleets.
While the U.S. has held big naval exercises like Bold Alligator and Rim of the Pacific, Klingensmith said the training events are growing in scope and complexity. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday has referred to the upcoming large-scale exercise as the biggest naval training event in a generation.
That’s because combining live and virtual participants “will expand the playing field beyond what has ever been achieved in live-only exercises,” Klingensmith said.
“LSE 2021 will use technologies similar to what you see in virtual video gaming environments to expand the number of participants by linking commands and units around the globe virtually, thereby increasing the number of players, real and synthetic, to better replicate the realistic scale of scenarios the Navy and Marine Corps team is likely to face in the future,” she added.
The sailors and Marines participating will test several concepts they’re likely to encounter in a possible conflict with China. Scenarios will test the sailors and Marines’ ability to conduct distributed operations; expeditionary advanced-base operations; littoral operations in a contested environment; and command and control in a contested environment.
“We’ve been applying warfighting concepts like Distributed Maritime Operations … to fleet battle problems at the strike group level to rapidly advance organizational learning,” Grady said. “LSE 2021 is important because we will apply those lessons learned at-scale to further our employment of synchronized, integrated operations across all domains globally, to ensure we remain the superior maritime force in a high-end fight.”
The Navy and Marine Corps are finalizing details on the exercise, but Klingensmith said they plan to incorporate at least one unmanned platform — the Autonomous Littoral Connector, a surface vessel that can provide logistics support from shore to ship.
That’s traditionally a Navy mission, she said, but during the exercise it’ll be under the command and control of the Marine Corps. The 2021 updates to Commandant Gen. David Berger’s Force Design plans for the Marine Corps call for that service to — in partnership with the Navy — explore developing “littoral maneuver groups” to operate the future light amphibious warship. (Source: Military.com)
22 May 21. STRIKFORNATO Holds Defensive Live-Fire Missile Interception Exercise. Exercise At-Sea Demo/Formidable Shield’s live-fire Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) environment is the most ambitious demonstration to date and the only event with actual destruction of ballistic missiles in space within Europe.
The exercise, which takes place May 15 to June 3, 2021, provides the opportunity to demonstrate the ability to conduct land and sea based defense against simultaneous cruise and ballistic missile threats with coordinated command and control.
“At-Sea-Demo/Formidable Shield allows Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO) headquarters command and control of a multinational force to provide capable, credible deterrence against aggression,” said Royal Marines Col. Andrew Lock, Assistant Chief of Staff Operations at STRIKFORNATO. “These types of exercises demonstrate our technical and tactical capabilities to defend the Alliance.”
This year, as the command and control node for NATO forces, STRIKFORNATO is conducting the exercise between the ten participating nations as they work together to respond to integrated air and missile defense threats. Serving as the critical link to integrate the complex sea, land, air, and space systems from multiple nations into a task force, the staff is focused on strengthening their ability to share common tactical pictures, share situational awareness, and conduct NATO-level mission planning and engagement coordination.
“Several live-fire and simulated engagements against subsonic, supersonic, and ballistic targets demonstrations will take place during the exercise, including the first defensive live-intercept of a ballistic missile using multinational data systems to track the target,” said U.S Navy Cmdr. Brett Lefever, Deputy Integrated Missile Defense branch at STRIKFORNATO. “The multinational cooperation for a ballistic missile intercept in outer space is truly remarkable and proves the Alliance’s commitment to interoperability and defense.”
To fully support the complex nature of the exercise, STRIKFORNATO responded by standing up a Joint Operations Center in Oeiras, Portugal and a forward-deployed staff at-sea onboard the Spanish Álvaro de Bazán-class frigate ESPS Cristóbal Colón (F-105), which is the designated flagship of the Commander, Task Group Integrated Air and Missile Defense, Capt. Jonathan Lipps. Additional personnel support events taking place at the range control stations in the U.K.
STRIKFORNATO is a rapidly deployable headquarters that provides scalable command and control across the full spectrum of the alliance’s fundamental security tasks. As part of that mission, STRIKFORNATO is responsible for integrating U.S. naval and amphibious forces into NATO operations.
U.S. 6th Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allied and interagency partners, to advance U.S. national interests and security and stability in Europe and Africa. (Source: ASD Network)
23 May 21. UK’s Defence Senior Advisor concludes visit to Egypt. The UK Chief of Defence Staff’s Senior Advisor to the Middle East & North Africa, Air Marshal Martin (Sammy) Sampson, has concludes his visit to Egypt.
During the visit, the UK Chief of Defence Staff’s Senior Advisor to the Middle East & North Africa (DSAME) held high-level meetings with senior officials from the Egyptian Armed Forces and was accompanied by British Defence Attaché to Egypt Captain (Royal Navy) Stephen Deacon.
AM Martin Sampson met with Commander of Egyptian Air Forces where both sides discussed ways to enhance bilateral cooperation between the two nations’ Air Forces.
DSAME also convened meetings with Chief of Training Authority and Chief of Armament Authority, where both sides discussed topics of common interest and explored ways to deepen the future training and defence procurement engagements.
Making remarks at the end of his visit, Air Marshal Martin Sampson said, “I am delighted to be back in Egypt and to meet senior officials from the Egyptian Armed Forces. We have had very fruitful discussions about ways to reinforce our bilateral military partnership, including: joint training and exercises; operational coordination to counter terrorism and promote our common security interests in the region and our shared prosperity agendas.”
British Ambassador to Egypt, Sir Geoffrey Adams, said, “Air Marshal Sampson’s visit shows our continued commitment to working with Egypt to strengthen our defence relations: from defence procurement, to training, to sharing expertise. Earlier this year, the UK published a new defence strategy, alongside our Integrated Review of foreign, defence, and security policy, and that strategy makes clear the importance of partnership to our collective security and military capacity. Visits like this advance those aims. We are committed to working with Egypt in the interests of both countries’ security, and we look forward to further cooperation in future.” (Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
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