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http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #361 APRIL 2018 // 15

Randolph

will be

fi rst base

for T-X

THE US Air Force

announced on February

21 that the forthcoming

Advanced Pilot Trainer

(T-X) will first replace

the T-38C Talon at Joint

Base San Antonio-

Randolph, Texas. The

airfield was selected as

the preferred location

for the first T-X aircraft,

which is scheduled to

arrive in 2022. The T-X

will replace the T-38 at

other undergraduate pilot

training bases, including

Columbus Air Force Base,

Mississippi; Laughlin

AFB, Texas; Sheppard

AFB, Texas; and Vance

AFB, Oklahoma. Final

decisions on locations

are dependent on

the outcome of

environmental analyses.

Stationing the T-X at JB

San Antonio-Randolph

first, the home of USAF

instructor pilot training,

ensures that a T-X

instructor pilot pipeline

will be established before

the transition to T-X

training at the other flying

training locations. The

USAF expects to award

a contract for the new

aircraft later this year.

“As we bring the T-X

into service, we’ll base

them at our current

undergraduate pilot

training bases which have

the airspace and runways

needed for the mission,”

said Secretary of the Air

Force Heather A Wilson.

F-15E gains JASSM-ER capability

THE US Air Force’s

operational F-15E fleet has

fielded the Joint Air-to-

Surface Standoff Missile

Extended Range (JASSM-

ER). The weapon achieved

full operational capability on

the Strike Eagle following

integration and fielding of

the Suite 8 Operational

Flight Program. The

F-15E is the first Universal

Armament Interface (UAI)-

compliant platform to field

the weapon. UAI-compliant

aircraft feature standardised

interfaces to support future

weapon integration. The

addition of the JASSM-ER

to the F-15E’s inventory

was led by the USAF

Seek Eagle Office.

JASSM-ER is also carried

by the B-1B and is in the

process of being integrated

on the F-16C/D and the

internal bay and underwing

hardpoints of the B-52H.

A USAF F-15E fl ies with a JASSM. With a standoff range of over 500nm, the JASSM-ER has more than two-and-a-half times

the reach of the baseline weapon. USAF

MQ-9s fl y into

Kandahar from Turkey
IN A first for US Air
Forces Central Command
(CENTCOM), MQ-
Reaper unmanned aerial
vehicles (UAVs) flew to
a new assignment in
Afghanistan rather than
being dismantled and
shipped in on board C-17A
transports. The drones
flew to Kandahar Airfield in
January direct from Incirlik
Air Base in Turkey where
they had been supporting
Operation Inherent Resolve.
This method of deployment
allowed the UAVs to begin
combat sorties within 24
hours of arrival. MQ-9s

have previously been

flown from one location to

another in various theatres,

but not in CENTCOM.

In related news, the US

Navy is in talks to acquire

former USAF MQ-

Predator UAVs, according

to USAF officials. The

air force plans to cease

MQ-1 flying operations on

March 9 as it transitions

to an all MQ-9 Reaper

force. Although the

USAF is retiring the

drone, other MQ-1s

will continue flying with

government contractors

until the end of the year.

A FORWARD detachment

from the US Navy’s

Helicopter Sea Combat

Squadron (HSC) 25 ‘Island

Knights’ recently completed

two weeks of tactics

exchanges and multi-

mission training flights

with the F-35Bs of Marine

Fighter Attack Squadron

(VMFA) 121 at Marine Corps

Air Station Iwakuni, Japan.

HCS-25’s Detachment 6,

based at Naval Air Facility

Atsugi, met with pilots and

aircrew of VMFA-121 to

share expertise on close

air support procedures and

interoperability to support the

Expeditionary Strike Group.

The ‘Island Knights’ and

VMFA-121 are slated to

embark together aboard

the USS Wasp (LHD 1)

for a scheduled patrol,

which will be the first time

F-35Bs deploy aboard a US

Navy ship in the Seventh

Fleet area of operations.

While in Iwakuni, the

detachment also conducted

flights to enhance surface

warfare proficiency with

the MH-60Rs of Helicopter

Maritime Strike Squadron

(HSM) 51 ‘Warlords’.

‘Island Knights’ train with F-35Bs

Above: MQ-9s on the fl ight line at Kandahar Airfi eld last November. Reapers have returned to

Afghanistan as the US seeks to bolster its air power in the country. USAF/Staff Sgt Divine Cox

MH-60R and MH-60S Seahawk

helicopters assigned to HSM-51 and

HSC-25 rendezvous off the coast

of Hiroshima following a strike co-

ordination and reconnaissance

training mission from Iwakuni.

US Navy/Lt Chris Kimbrough