NAWDC at Fallon. He’s typical of the kind
of experience level that can be found
at Lemoore. Explaining the last CVW-9
detachment in more detail, Holdiman
says, ‘We primarily preformed presence
missions in the Seventh Fleet area of
operations, maintaining stability in the
region and working with our partners
around there. That entailed ying in the
South China Sea, the East China Sea, and
the Korean theater. While in Korea, we
participated in some joint exercises with
the [Republic of Korea] Air Force.’
With so much attention on the
Operation ‘Inherent Resolve’ missions in
the Middle East, it’s interesting to note
the contrast for the Navy with blue-water
operations in the Paci c. It’s a region that
proved to be particularly tense in 2017,Right: VADM
Mike Shoemaker,
the commander
of Naval Air
Forces, speaks
at a ceremony
marking the
arrival of the
F-35C Lightning
II at Lemoore.
US Navy/MCS3C
Zachary Eshleman
Below: VFA-146
‘Blue Diamonds’
transitioned from
the F/A-18C to
the F/A-18E in- Ted Carlson/
Fotodynamics
http://www.combataircraft.net // March 2018 27
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