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  • F-35A at Red Flag 19-1

    Red Flag strengthens F-35A maintainers

    After more than two weeks launching F-35A sorties at Red Flag 19-1, maintainers with the 388th Fighter Wing are impressed with the jet and the young airmen who help maintain it. The 4th Fighter Squadron and 4th Aircraft maintenance unit brought 12 jets and more than 200 Airmen from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to Red Flag for the three week exercise. Red Flag is the Air Force’s premier combat exercise and pits a friendly “blue” force against an enemy “red” force in challenging combat scenarios. “This is about as close as you’re going to get to a deployed environment. We’ve been able to sustain a very aggressive schedule and keep the mission-capable rate high,” said Master Sgt. Paul DeGrechie, production superintendent with the 4th AMU. “The F-35 was designed to be maintenance friendly, and that’s been the case here.”
  • 388th Operations Support Squadron Aircrew Flight Equipment shop, works on flight equipment, Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, Feb. 5, 2019. AFE Airmen manage, check and prepare gear pilots need to fly and also survive in the event of an emergency. (U.S. Air Force photo by R. Nial Bradshaw)

    Helping F-35A pilots operate, survive at Red Flag

    The F-35 is lethal and survivable in almost any environment, but it’s just a machine, unable to do anything without a skilled pilot. Those pilots need gear to interface with the jet, operate and survive. Outfitting the pilots is the job of the Airmen in the 388th Operations Support Squadron Aircrew Flight Equipment shop. A handful are currently deployed to Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, for Red Flag 19-1. Red Flag is the Air Force’s premier combat training exercise where units from across the Air Force join with allied nations in a “blue force” to combat a “red force” in a variety of challenging scenarios over three weeks.
  • An Airman sits in the cockpit of an F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jet.

    Red Flag adjusts for today’s challenges

    The 414th Combat Training Squadron (CTS), which oversees Red Flag, is making changes to the exercise for improved efficiency at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev. Red Flag is a realistic multi-domain training exercise that maximizes the combat readiness and survivability of participants by providing a robust, accurate training environment. While early Red Flag exercises focused on survivability of combat pilots, Red Flag integrates the five core functions of the Air Force: Intelligence Reconnaissance Surveillance (ISR), Command and Control, Air Superiority, Strike and Personnel Recovery to ensure Airmen are ready for today’s fight.
  • A U.S. Air Force F-16 pilot assigned to the 79th Fighter Squadron prepares for take-off during Exercise Red Flag 19-1 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., Jan. 30, 2019.

    “Tigers” roar through Red Flag 19-1

    U.S. Airmen assigned to the 79th Fighter Squadron and 20th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, 79th Aircraft Maintenance Unit, are participating in Exercise Red Flag 19-1 from Jan. 26 – Feb. 15. The goal of Red Flag is to prepare Air Force, Joint, and Coalition pilots, aircrews and operators to fight against peer-level adversaries in any combat environment. Throughout the 3-week exercise, the Air Force’s five core functions are integrated. The functions are: intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, command and control, superiority, strike, and personal recovery and mobility.
  • A formation of F-35A Lightning IIs, from the 388th and 419th Fighter Wings, fly over the Utah Test and Training Range. As the first combat-ready F-35 units in the Air Force, the 388th and 419th FW at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, are ready to deploy anywhere in the world at a moment's notice. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Andrew Lee)

    'Lethal' F-35A heading to Red Flag 19-1

    Pilots and maintainers from the 388th Fighter Wing are bringing the F-35A and ‘increased lethality’ as they take a lead role in Red Flag 19-1 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, From Jan. 26 - Feb. 15, approximately 200 Airmen from Hill AFB, including reservists from the 419th Fighter Wing, will participate in what is known as the Air Force’s premier combat training exercise. The 388th FW debuted the F-35A Lightning II at Red Flag in 2017 and came away with a 20:1 kill ratio.
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