Triple Nickels kick-off exercise African Lion 2019 with a roar
Airmen from the 31st Fighter Wing and Royal Moroccan Air Force conduct F-16 aviation training during exercise African Lion 2019, March 25-April 3, 2019, at Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco.
African Lion 2019 is a Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff-sponsored, U.S. Africa Command-scheduled, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa-led, joint and combined exercise conducted in the Kingdom of Morocco with a spoke in Tunisia, and armed forces participants in from Canada, France, Senegal, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
The exercise involves various types of training, including a combined joint-task-force command-post exercise, aviation training exercise, field training exercise, maritime training exercise, and humanitarian civic assistance, with focus on transnational threats, regional cooperation, and cyber security and defense.
“We’re focused mostly on the aviation training exercise, which is a small portion of the overall exercise,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Beau Diers, the 555th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron commander. “Large force employment exercises (like this) are great for pilot development.
“Participating in these types of exercises provides a training opportunity for our pilots to get them outside of their comfort zone,” Diers added. “A new location, a new airspace, and talking to new people on the radio are all just invaluable experiences.”
The annually-scheduled, combined multilateral exercise is designed to improve interoperability and mutual understanding of each nations’ tactics, techniques, procedures while demonstrating the strong bond between the nations’ militaries.
“The training has been great,” said Diers. “The air space and range they have provided are for full-scale weapons deliveries, which provide us with an opportunity that we do not get to train on a regular basis, so we’re super happy with the support they’ve given us.”
Throughout the exercise, the U.S. and Moroccan F-16s conducted basic surface attacks and large-force employments, including inert GBU-24 Paveway III and GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bombs used for the first time in Morocco.
“The flying has been awesome,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Megan Hainline, the 555th EFS F-16C Fighting Falcon flight lead. “They have gotten some ranges setup so that we can shoot the gun and drop bombs we do not normally get to drop.
“Working with the Moroccans has been pretty awesome,” added Hainline. “It’s always surprising when you go to another country, and although English is their third language, you still speak the same language when you get into tactics and briefing missions.”
With a new setting, the pilots navigated a new airspace and operating systems, but Hainline believes the changes enhanced the teams flying capabilities while fostering an invaluable relationship with the Moroccans.
“For any partner that we work with through the military, it is awesome to get real-world experience working directly with them,” said Hainline. “The personal relationships that we are building with their pilots and maintainers are really important moving forward, because now I know them and they’re familiar faces.“
Not only did the exercise provide a new training environment for the F-16 pilots, but it also provided a unique learning experience for the 555th Aircraft Maintenance Unit.
“This is a good experience for them to get used to what it’s going to be like when we deploy downrange,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Aaron Childs, the 555th AMU productions superintendent. “It’s a good teamwork and team-building opportunity for them to see what it’s like to be one team-one fight. (Ultimately) it’s definitely a leadership opportunity for all levels of people to learn how to lead because we’re dealing with some adversity that we do not deal with everyday.”
In order to keep the F-16s flying, the maintenance Airmen conducted 24-hour operations while balancing the extreme temperatures in the day and frigid temperatures at night.
“So far they have done very well and we haven't had any major issues,” said Childs. “We’re having to keep everything short and sweet; turn over has to be precise and quick. When we’re getting the pilots the jets they ask for every day, everything has been safe and reliable.”
Despite the successes of his maintenance crew, Childs reminds his Airmen to always be ready for the unexpected because a resilient mindset is what it will take to keep the F-16s in the air throughout the exercise.
“As a project officer, I planned for this exercise for months and I tried to plan every detail and scenario,” added Childs. “It’s been day-by-day that we’re learning new ways to do things and dealing with new difficulties; so it is best is to just expect the unexpected, keep your head (in the game), and do well.”
Royal Moroccan Air Force maintainers check a Moroccan F-16 prior to takeoff during exercise African Lion 2019 at Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco, March 25, 2019. A Royal Moroccan Air Force F-16 taxis past two F-16C Fighting Falcons from the 555th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron during exercise African Lion 2019 at Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco, March 25, 2019. Two Royal Moroccan Air Force F-16s rests on the flight line during exercise African Lion 2019 at Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco, March 25, 2019.
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Dernière édition par Fremo le Lun 1 Avr 2019 - 22:07, édité 3 fois
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U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Quincey Watts, a 555th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron F-16C Fighting Falcon pilot, exits his aircraft during exercise African Lion 2019 at Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco, March 25, 2019. U.S. Air Force Capt. Dave Brady, a 555th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron F-16C Fighting Falcon pilot, performs a pre-flight check during exercise African Lion 2019 at Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco, March 25, 2019. F-16C Fighting Falcons from the 555th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron rest on the flight line during exercise African Lion 2019 at Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco, March 25, 2019. An F-16C Fighting Falcon from the 555th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron taxis during Exercise African Lion 2019, at Ben Guerir, Morocco, March 25, 2019. Four F-16C Fighting Falcons from the 555th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron taxi during exercise African Lion 2019 at Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco, March 25, 2019.
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The 31st Munitions Squadron keep F-16s armed to deliver the roar. The Airmen deployed with more than 100,000 pounds of munitions to ensure the F-16C Fighting Falcons were armed with 20mm rounds, inert GBU-24 Paveway III and GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bombs.
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Lt. Archiche Alaedin, Royal Moroccan Air Force pilot, observes two 37th Airlift Squadron C-130J Super Hercules loadmasters rigging cargo for the days aerial exercise during Exercise African Lion on Kenitra Air Base, Morocco, March 25, 2019. During the exercise the 37th AS conducted approximately 24 low-cost/low-altitude parachute drops.
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Members of the 435th Contingency Response Group and Royal Moroccan Armed Forces paratroopers participate in a jump mission exercise during Exercise African Lion on a C-130J Super Hercules, March 26, 2019. The 435th CRG and the Royal Moroccan Armed Force paratroopers conducted jump exercises to enhance interoperability and maintain jump efficiency.
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Airman 1st Class Jayson Fox, 86th Operational Support Squadron aircrew flight equipment journeyman, shows night vision goggles to a member of the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces flight crew during Exercise African Lion on Kenitra Air Base, Morocco, March 29, 2019. During the exercise Fox briefed Royal Moroccan Armed Forces flight crew member on the safety features of the C-130J Super Hercules and the mechanisms that save pilots lives in emergency situations.
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A Royal Moroccan Armed Forces paratrooper participates in a free-fall jump mission during Exercise African Lion, on a C-130J Super Hercules, April 01, 2019. This year was the first time Royal Moroccan military paratroopers conducted free fall operations on board a U.S. aircraft.
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The U.S. Air Force 37th Airlift Squadron uses a Joint Precision Airdrop System to GPS guide its cargo directly onto its target during Exercise African Lion, April 1, 2019. This is the second year the 37th AS used the JPAS system during Exercise African Lion, which continues to allow them to be accurate when dispensing cargo.
Citation :
A Royal Moroccan Armed Forces paratrooper participates in a free-fall jump mission during Exercise African Lion, on a C-130J Super Hercules, April 01, 2019. This year was the first time Royal Moroccan military paratroopers conducted free fall operations on board a U.S. aircraft.
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Je suppose qu'il est temps de renforcer notre flotte de transport par des nouveaux c130j. Nos 130 sont trop sollicités et il faudra préparer leur retraite.
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U.S., Royal Moroccan armed forces continue to build relations; African Lion 19
As the third annual Exercise African Lion 2019 wraps-up, approximately 1,100 U.S. service members prepare to redeploy out of the Kingdom of Morocco and Tunisia.
Exercise African Lion 19 is a combined multilateral exercise designed to improve interoperability and mutual understanding of each nations tactics, while demonstrating the strong bond between the nations’ militaries.
Moroccan and U.S. friendship has endured for over 240 years.
The U.S. values Morocco's strength and stability, and as such will continue to contribute to their fight against Violent Extremist Organizations.
For this exercise the U.S. joined armed forces from several other countries including Canada, Spain, the United Kingdom, Tunisia and the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces.
Airmen from the Ramstein area, including the 37th Airlift Squadron, the 86th Logistic Readiness Squadron, the 86th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, and the 435th Contingency Response Group helped support aviation training exercises along the Moroccan coastline.
During the two week exercise, U.S. armed forces personnel along with the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces operating out of Kenitra Air Base, Morocco, conducted extensive training, including approximately 120 flying hours, low-level mountain flying, aeromedical evacuation training, approximately 122 joint-personnel drops, approximately 102 static line jumps, and approximately 24 low-cost/low-altitude parachute drops.
“We did a low-cost/low-altitude drop, something that can absolutely be done here,” said Capt. Luke Walker, 37th Airlift Squadron pilot and African Lion 2019 deputy mission commander. “It was windy, but they were very impressed that we only used a small crew, a pilot, co-pilot and two load masters, but still were able to hit our point of impact without a navigator.”
Walker said the U.S. Air Force 37th AS contributed to the exercises’ main objective of countering Violent Extremist Organizations, by showing the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces their military free-fall, high-altitude, low-opening operations and the low cost ways to do airdrops to resupply their forces.
The 37th AS also conducted dirt landings to help train the Royal Moroccan military on how to insert and extract their teams, while also being able to resupply their forces with heavier equipment, that can’t be airdropped.
“This is training that we can’t get back at Ramstein very easily, so it’s great for us, because our crew gets to train, while also working with Moroccan forces to see how well we can operate in a tactical environment,” said Walker.
This iteration of Exercise African Lion was a year of firsts.
Exercise African Lion 19 was the first time Royal Moroccan military personnel conducted free fall operations onboard a U.S. aircraft, the first time the 86th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron conducted contested scenarios in the U.S. Africa Command, and the first time Royal Moroccan medical personnel conducted medical scenarios on board a U.S. aircraft with the 86th AES.
“Last year was the first time we came to this exercise, but we were only able to table talk and show them our static displays,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Sara Hidinger, 86th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron flight nurse. “This year we were actually able to put the Royal Moroccan medical personnel on a U.S plane. I was floored at how well they were able to jump into any medical scenario. They asked a lot of questions and were eager to learn about our medical equipment on the aircraft. We were able to build a great relationship with our medical counterparts.”
Though the U.S. and Royal Moroccan armed forces aimed to sharpen their own individual skills by training in unfamiliar settings, the main objective was to strengthen relations and for each nation to successfully operate in conjunction with one another.
The Moroccans are a very capable partner and the more we get to practice our operations together, the greater we build our partnership capacity, said Capt. Joshua Kelsey, 37th AS pilot and Exercise African Lion 2019 mission commander.
While Exercise African Lion 19 was designed to train U.S., Moroccan, Tunisian and other regionally based African partnered forces, it was also meant to reinforce lessons learned from past African Lion exercises and provide a foundation and structure for future military cooperation and engagements.
Kelsey said it’s a learning process for everyone involved, but last year both nations learned how to talk to each other and compromise to bring mutual benefits, which seemed to help to progress operations a lot faster this year.
“It’s an absolute benefit for us,” said Kelsey. “We get to exercise ourselves in way that we don’t get to do locally. Coming here to Morocco is unique in and of itself.”
Kelsey said Exercise African Lion 19 was a success and he looks forward to integrating with the Royal Moroccan forces next year.
The U.S. Department of Defense recognizes Morocco’s role as a strong and stable partner in North Africa and their contributions to the counter-ISIL mission. Through the African Lion partnership, the Department of Defense will continue to support Morocco’s efforts to modernize their forces and defeat violent extremist organizations’ attempts to gain influence in Morocco.
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Moroccan air traffic controller and joint terminal attack controller with the Royal Moroccan Air Force, radios a U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress during close-air support training as part of exercise African Lion 2019 at Greir Labouihi range, Morocco, March 27, 2019
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