Defending the skies from the ground

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Tony Richardson
  • Red Flag Public Affairs
CALIENTE, Nev. --  On an abandoned air strip miles from civilization, a group of nearly 80 Soldiers from 1-7 ADA Battalion, 108th Brigade, Fort Bragg, N.C. perform a mission that is critical to Operation Red Flag 11-3.

"Our mission is to provide air defense for geopolitical assets and friendly forces to allow freedom of maneuver within the theater," said Capt. Orlando Carmona, Charlie Battery commander.

Red Flag is a realistic combat training exercise involving the air forces of the United States and its allies. The exercise takes place north of Las Vegas on the NTTR, which includes more than 12,000 square miles of airspace and 2.9 million acres of land. Red Flag 11-3 is unique in that it provides a more heavily-contested and degraded operational environment than ever before to prepare crews for major combat operations against a near-peer adversary.

The exercise also allows new Army lieutenants the opportunity to work with the Air Force so that they can see the overall spectrum of air operations, the captain said.

"Not only are we receiving vital training in the joint environment, we are also educating the Air Force on our capabilities and limitations so that we can increase the Air Force's confidence in our role as air defenders," Captain Carmona said.

Throughout the exercise, Soldiers are constantly evaluated on techniques, tactics and procedures to validate their proficiency levels and verify equipment operation. Soldiers set up communication systems to allow Army assets to communicate with Army friendly forces located hundreds of miles away.

"We monitor the skies for threats. After we coordinate with our information coordination center, we engage the enemy with our air defense missiles," Captain Carmona said. "We take every precaution to reduce the possibility of fratricide, even in this simulated environment."

The remote location, while scenic, does present some challenges, said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Hanna Edwards, Patriot technical/tactical air missile defense technician.

"Being away from the rest of the battalion can be tough," CW2 Edwards said. "If we're repairing equipment and need a part that we don't have in our parts van, then we have to get our battalion to mail it to us."

The 414th Combat Training Squadron is responsible for executing Red Flag, which is one of a series of advanced training program exercises administered by organizations assigned to the U.S. Air Force Warfare Center. The "peacetime battlefield" provided by Nellis Air Force Base and the NTTR allow combat air forces to train to fight, survive and win together.