Voyager is taking part while a Sentinel and Rivet Joint are gathering intelligence and other mission-critical information.
The Royal Air Force have deployed Typhoon jets, Sentinel and Rivet Joint intelligence gathering aircraft and Voyager tankers to Exercise Red Flag in the US.
Typhoons, from 6 Squadron, RAF Lossiemouth, are ‘operating in a swing-role capacity, fighting their way into hostile airspace, launching precision strikes on ground targets and fighting their way out again.’
Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon said:
“The RAF is playing a major role alongside our greatest ally in the world’s leading aerial combat training exercise. Britain’s pilots and aircrews will receive unparalleled training and an opportunity to sharpen the combat skills they are demonstrating every day in the fight against Daesh.
Training alongside our US partners and other nations shows how the UK is stepping up internationally, ensuring maximum interoperability with our allies, and in doing so helping keep Britain safer and more secure.”
Wing Commander Billy Cooper, whose 6 Squadron Typhoons are taking part in Red Flag, said:
“We flew eight Typhoons here from RAF Lossiemouth to take part with our US and Australian counterparts. One of our UK day jobs is protecting sovereign airspace through Quick Reaction Alert, but in Nevada we’ve been air-to-air fighting and carrying out strike missions.
Red Flag’s threat replication is truly unique. We can simulate fighting our way into a target area through a high-threat environment, drop precision munitions on specific targets and then fight our way back out again.”
The exercise runs until early February.
Good to see. Thanks.