Gunfighters participate in Northern Edge

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Alyssa C, Wallace
  • 366th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
MOUNTAIN HOME AIR FORCE BASE, Idaho (ACCNS) --  Members of the 391st Fighter Squadron teamed up with U.S. military units from around the globe during the 2011 Northern Edge exercise at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, June 13-24.

Northern Edge is a joint exercise that brings members from the Air Force, Navy, Army and Marine Corps together to exercise various components of airborne warfare with each service bringing its own unique capabilities to the joint theatre. There is also a substantial contractor and civilian force required to sustain an operation of this magnitude.

"This exercise emphasizes the part we play in the big picture -- we go about fighting war as a joint team," said Col. Ron Buckley, 366th Fighter Wing commander.

The overall purpose of Northern Edge is to allow members from every career field within each of the services to hone their skills in an exercise environment.

"This exercise brings together the air components of each military branch to train in integration and joint doctrine, said Capt. Matt Cisar, 391st FS D-Flight commander and Northern Edge mission commander and instructor pilot. "For the 391st, the overall goal is to understand how we fit into a larger plan. By being able to practice with other services as a component in an intricate package, we can develop a bigger picture of how our tactical accomplishments support operational or strategic outcomes."

Northern Edge fosters operational situations beyond the conflicts the military is currently engaged in. This forces Airmen, Sailors and Soldiers to adjust and evolve joint-level doctrine in order to succeed. By training to any potential crises, service members are keeping the military agile for any mission it will be called upon to fulfill in the future. Northern Edge is unique to Alaska because of the great airspace available for an exercise of its magnitude, according to the captain.

"Northern Edge utilizes Alaska's abundant airspace structure to allow for unparalleled large force engagements," Cisar said. "By flying missions over the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, which is also home of Red Flag - Alaska, or in the open skies above the Gulf of Alaska, aircrews can integrate with land- and sea-based assets to improve joint integration across all services."

The mission at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, is to be ready to fill any role required across the globe, and a lot of these roles require Gunfighters to work side-by-side with members of other services. By forging good working relationships at Northern Edge, the 391st FS is preparing for crises at the tactical, operational and strategic levels.

"As with any culture, each military service develops cultural differences from one another," Cisar said. "By operating together over this two-week period, we have bridged the gap between some of these differences as a joint-fighting force. Furthermore, training to our joint operational doctrine allows us to evolve our tactics to enhance interoperability in the future."

Lessons learned during the exercise will prepare the fighter squadron for missions downrange.

"Our Gunfighters must be ready to perform a variety of missions in response to crises around the globe," Cisar said. "Northern Edge allows our Gunfighters to coordinate this cooperation in a training environment, developing lessons learned for future Gunfighters along the way."

"The takeaways from Northern Edge 2011 will absolutely be utilized in deployed locations," the captain continued. "Even in the most unusual of deployed taskings, the exposure our Gunfighter Airmen have had to sister services allows us to more smoothly operate in any environment."

The importance of the exercise was also emphasized by the 366th FW commander.

"We really have to hone our skills to be successful because some of our adversaries have good tactics and technology," Buckley said. "I think it's eye-opening for our young folks to realize there's more to fighting a war than flying your Strike Eagle. We are a critical part of that -- but we are just part of it."