Royal Air Force Typhoons, Voyager and personnel have joined counterparts from the United States and Australia to take part in Exercise Red Flag Nellis in its 50th anniversary year, marking 48 years of UK participation.
By challenging participants with realistic, complex and large-scale missions in one of the world’s toughest and best combat training environments, Exercise Red Flag tests and develops the skills and integration of all the participant aircrew, controllers, technicians and support teams. RAF personnel of all specialisations are taking part, including 51 Squadron Rivet Joint aircrew, Air Operations Controllers from 19 and 20 Squadrons, and aircrew and engineers from 6, 10 and 101 Squadrons operating the Typhoons and Voyager.
The US Air Force established Red Flag in 1975, after the Vietnam War had revealed that the first ten combat missions were the most dangerous for aircrews. So they created a way to recreate and rehearse the first ten missions the air campaign before the conflict started. The philosophy remains the same, and it continues to provide a uniquely valuable experience for all participants.
This series runs 26 January to 7 February at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, United States. It is followed by Exercise Bamboo Eagle, designed to put the lessons of Red Flag into in a combat-representative, multidimensional battlespace to conduct testing, tactics development, and advanced training in simulated contested environments.
“Red Flag gives our people and the UK a unique opportunity to boost our interoperability and integration with US and Australian forces, including 5th-generation and cutting-edge capabilities, and match them against current threats.
“Bamboo Eagle will then test our ability to integrate those tactical effects from dispersed forces and under distributed command and control, to synchronise air, space and cyber effects with the focus and agility needed to outmatch today’s threats. Throughout, we will develop our people’s ability to dynamically deliver air power through empowerment, effective risk management and innovation.”
Group Captain Lefroy
Detachment Commander
Generations of RAF aviators have attended this exercise over the five decades, 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 about 3,000 personnel, including over 370 from the UK and up to 100 aircraft conducting large force employment missions in a range of scenarios.
“Red Flag provides pilots the opportunity to plan and execute complex air missions in a high tempo and realistic environment, working alongside our allies to develop our Training Tactics and Procedures.
“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 and Australia.”
Squadron Leader Raeburn
Pilot, 6 Squadron
