As part of a Theater Security Package (TSP) funded through the European Deterrence Initiative (EDI),the US Air Force has deployed a squadron of F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters to Aviano Air Base,Italy.In a news release by US Air Force Europe,it was explained that:
the TSP provides a more robust U.S. military rotational presence in the European theater capable of deterring adversaries and assuring partners and U.S. allies of U.S. commitment to regional security.*
Drawn from the 388th (active duty) and 419th (Reserve) Fighter Wings out of Hill Air Force Base,Utah,the deployed aircraft arrived in Italy on 24 May 2019 and will stay for several weeks.Along with their associated Airmen and equipment,the F-35s will participate in training and exercises with other Europe-based aircraft.The 388th is on its second deployment to Europe,the first one having been to RAF Lakenheath,England in 2017;while the 419th,the newest F-35A squadron,is on its maiden deployment.
According to MAJ James Russell,F-35 pilot with the 419th FW:
It's a great honour to be part of another milestone for Hill and the F-35 community.Locally,this effort is a demonstration of our Total Force integration construct hard at work between the 388th and 419th FWs.On a larger scale,it's a great opportunity to showcase our newest fighter platform to our partner nations and assure those nations of our continued support for their safety and security.*
The purpose of the EDI,as stated in the Pentagon's FY 2019 budget request for the programme,is:
1.Continue to enhance our deterrent and defense posture throughout the theater by positioning the right capabilities,in key locations,in order to respond to adversarial threats in a timely manner.
2.Assure our NATO allies and partners of the United States' commitment to Article 5 and the territorial integrity of all 28 (now 29,with Montenegro's accession) NATO nations.
3.Increase the capability and readiness of U.S. Forces,NATO Allies,and regional partners,allowing for a faster response in the event of any aggression by a regional adversary against the sovereign territory of NATO nations.*
The EDI was established as the European Reassurance Initiative in 2014,soon after Russia's annexation of Crimea,Ukraine.
Showing posts with label Aviano Air Base. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aviano Air Base. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 28, 2019
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
SecDef Outlines Success,Plans for Europe at Italian Air Base - at a critical time
US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter spoke to airmen of the US Air Force's 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base,Italy on 13 December 2016 as part of his holiday visit to the troops,his last before leaving office in January.Dr.Carter revealed a successful airstrike in the Middle East that directly impacts European security:
I wanted to tell you something that I have not said before.And,you know,we don't talk about these operations very much;but you're the first to know.I can confirm that today we took out three of ISIL's key leaders in the last couple of weeks.It was one strike.These are guys who were linked to plots right here in Europe.And I can't share all the details with you,but,for example,with the Paris attacks.And they were associates of al-Adnani,who was,if you'll recall,the chief external plotter for ISIL and its chief spokesman.*
Addressing members of the US Army's 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team,who are based at Vicenza,Italy,Dr.Carter noted that:
We have,just to remind you,just two brigades stationed all the time here;another one that we'll be putting in on a persistent rotational basis;equipment for a fourth,so that will be an armoured division that troops can fall in on in a crisis;a battalion in the Baltics;and of course much,much more at sea,on land and in the air-a sad necessity of our time,but one that we need to do.
So whether it is in Europe;whether it is in the Middle East;whether it is in Africa,all the things you're doing here are necessary;they're extremely important.So you're right here,right now at a critical time in our strategic history,Dr.Carter concluded.
I wanted to tell you something that I have not said before.And,you know,we don't talk about these operations very much;but you're the first to know.I can confirm that today we took out three of ISIL's key leaders in the last couple of weeks.It was one strike.These are guys who were linked to plots right here in Europe.And I can't share all the details with you,but,for example,with the Paris attacks.And they were associates of al-Adnani,who was,if you'll recall,the chief external plotter for ISIL and its chief spokesman.*
Addressing members of the US Army's 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team,who are based at Vicenza,Italy,Dr.Carter noted that:
We have,just to remind you,just two brigades stationed all the time here;another one that we'll be putting in on a persistent rotational basis;equipment for a fourth,so that will be an armoured division that troops can fall in on in a crisis;a battalion in the Baltics;and of course much,much more at sea,on land and in the air-a sad necessity of our time,but one that we need to do.
So whether it is in Europe;whether it is in the Middle East;whether it is in Africa,all the things you're doing here are necessary;they're extremely important.So you're right here,right now at a critical time in our strategic history,Dr.Carter concluded.
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
US Air Force Augments Baltic Presence
Over March 14-15,12 US Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons plus a C-130 transport and about 200 support troops arrived at Lask Air Base near Lodz,Poland.The planes and personnel are with the 555th Fighter Squadron,31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base,Italy.They will be conducting an off-site exercise with the Polish air force to demonstrate US commitment to the NATO collective defence pact,Air Force News reported.
Lt.Col.John Peterson,Squadron Commander,said one of their objectives is to develop bonds so that if something happens,and we have to take action in a real world environment,you want to have trained together in advance.You want to develop those tactics,techniques and procedures before you're in a combat environment.Unless you figure out how to work together at a tactical level,from the Squadron Commander to the Junior Airman turning wrenches-you lose out on the opportunity to know each other's strengths and develop your weaknesses.
There is a permanent detachment of about 10 USAF personnel in Poland to act as a coordinating element for joint training between the US and its NATO ally Poland.Its aim is to remain ready to operate across the range of military operations with precise,full-spectrum capability.It was activated in November 2012 and makes it possible to host multiple allied air force elements,and serves as a regional hub for air training and multinational exercrises.
The current augmentation by the USAF with common assets-Poland has 48 of its own F-16 fighters-is seen as a milestone in the rotational deployment of US military resources in Poland since 2012.*
At the same time,another augmentation has occurred in the Baltic state of Lithuania with the deployment of six USAF F-15C Eagles and a KC-135 tanker,plus more than 60 airmen,from RAF Lakenheath,England to Siauliai Air Base at the request of the Baltic allies Lithuania,Latvia and Estonia.These countries lack their own air force and NATO sends aircraft to patrol their airspace on a rotational basis.The six F-15s are an augmentation of the current routine USAF deployment to Lithuania,which runs from January through April,when Poland will assume the patrols.
The Lithuanian defence ministry said the augmentation was in response to the Russian aggression in Ukraine and its amplified miltary activity in the Kaliningrad
region,Baltic News Service reported.Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite told journalists in Brussels that Russia was trying to redraw the boundaries,so first it's Ukraine;Moldova will be next;and,finally,it can reach the Baltic states.
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered live fire exercises in Kaliningrad without following the standard protocol of notifying the nearby Baltic states and Poland or inviting international observers,according to Polish General Marek Dukaczewski.Kaliningrad is a Russian enclave bordering Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea.*
Another NATO ally,Turkey,which is across the Black Sea from Ukraine,has recently scrambled fighter jets to intercept Russian warplanes probing its air defences.
Lt.Col.John Peterson,Squadron Commander,said one of their objectives is to develop bonds so that if something happens,and we have to take action in a real world environment,you want to have trained together in advance.You want to develop those tactics,techniques and procedures before you're in a combat environment.Unless you figure out how to work together at a tactical level,from the Squadron Commander to the Junior Airman turning wrenches-you lose out on the opportunity to know each other's strengths and develop your weaknesses.
There is a permanent detachment of about 10 USAF personnel in Poland to act as a coordinating element for joint training between the US and its NATO ally Poland.Its aim is to remain ready to operate across the range of military operations with precise,full-spectrum capability.It was activated in November 2012 and makes it possible to host multiple allied air force elements,and serves as a regional hub for air training and multinational exercrises.
The current augmentation by the USAF with common assets-Poland has 48 of its own F-16 fighters-is seen as a milestone in the rotational deployment of US military resources in Poland since 2012.*
At the same time,another augmentation has occurred in the Baltic state of Lithuania with the deployment of six USAF F-15C Eagles and a KC-135 tanker,plus more than 60 airmen,from RAF Lakenheath,England to Siauliai Air Base at the request of the Baltic allies Lithuania,Latvia and Estonia.These countries lack their own air force and NATO sends aircraft to patrol their airspace on a rotational basis.The six F-15s are an augmentation of the current routine USAF deployment to Lithuania,which runs from January through April,when Poland will assume the patrols.
The Lithuanian defence ministry said the augmentation was in response to the Russian aggression in Ukraine and its amplified miltary activity in the Kaliningrad
region,Baltic News Service reported.Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite told journalists in Brussels that Russia was trying to redraw the boundaries,so first it's Ukraine;Moldova will be next;and,finally,it can reach the Baltic states.
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered live fire exercises in Kaliningrad without following the standard protocol of notifying the nearby Baltic states and Poland or inviting international observers,according to Polish General Marek Dukaczewski.Kaliningrad is a Russian enclave bordering Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea.*
Another NATO ally,Turkey,which is across the Black Sea from Ukraine,has recently scrambled fighter jets to intercept Russian warplanes probing its air defences.
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