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http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #358 JANUARY 2018 // 15

Pacifi c Thunder 18-1 at Osan

THE PACIFIC Air Forces

(PACAF) joint combat

search and rescue (CSAR)

exercise Pacific Thunder

18-1 was held at Osan Air

Base, South Korea. The

exercise began on October

23 and involved more than

20 US squadrons and

nine Republic of Korea

Air Force wings, making

it the largest to date.

Pacific Thunder provides

the A-10-equipped 25th

Fighter Squadron (FS)

and the 33rd and 31st

Rescue Squadrons (RQS)

with opportunities to

train in simulated CSAR

missions while working

alongside their South

Korean counterparts.

The first Pacific Thunder

in 2009 was a one-week

exercise between the 25th

FS and the 33rd RQS and

it has since expanded into

a PACAF-level exercise.

HH-60G 89-26207 ‘ZZ’

from the 33rd RQS during

Exercise Pacifi c Thunder 18-

at Osan AB. USAF/Airman 1st

Class Gwendalyn Smith

Raptor

strikes in

Afghanistan

THE US Department of

Defense has publicly

disclosed an F-22A

mission over Afghanistan

for the first time. The

Raptor dropped its

first bombs on the

country during the

night of November 19,

hitting Taliban narcotics

laboratories and other

infrastructure in Musa

Qala with GBU-39B

Small Diameter Bombs

(SDBs). Initial strikes

had been flown the

previous day by Afghan

Air Force A-29s, which

hit two opium-production

facilities in northern

Helmand Province.

The F-22 Raptor “is one

of our most advanced

fighter aircraft,” said

United States Forces-

Afghanistan (USFOR-A)

commander Gen John

Nicholson. “This aircraft

was used because

of its ability to deliver

precision munitions, in

this case a 250lb bomb

that causes the minimal

amount of collateral

damage.” B-52Hs were

also involved in the air

strikes on eight opium-

production facilities, in a

series of raids intended

to target Taliban revenue

streams. The F-22 strike

hit a production facility

in Musa Qala. Video

showed two structures in

the complex destroyed,

and another left standing.

As part of the US

government’s revised

South Asia strategy, new

authorities allow USFOR-A

to strike financial targets

as well as military ones.

THE US Air Force’s

52nd Fighter Wing (FW)

conducted a wing-wide

sortie ‘surge’ exercise at

Spangdahlem Air Base,

Germany, between October

23 and 26, 2017. A sortie

surge involves an increase

in flying in a short time to

test the limits of operations

at the wing and provide

conditions representative

of a wartime tasking. The

aim of the exercise was

to increase the F-16s’

flying schedule to 192

sorties in just four days –

an amount that typically

takes half a month.

Spangdahlem F-

sortie ‘surge’

F-16C Block 50C 91-0352 ‘SP/52 FW’ from the 52nd FW

taxis out after ‘hot pit’ refuelling during the sortie surge

exercise at Spangdahlem. USAF/Senior Airman Preston Cherry

Wisconsin F-16s complete

Kunsan deployment

US AIR Force F-16Cs from

the Wisconsin Air National

Guard’s 115th Fighter

Wing’s 176th Expeditionary

Fighter Squadron (EFS)

‘Badgers’ have completed

a three-month deployment

to Kunsan Air Base, South

Korea. The aircraft and

approximately 270 airmen

from the unit returned

home to Truax Field on

November 8, 2017.

The 115th Fighter Wing

had deployed to the Indo-

Asia-Pacific region to

help maintain a deterrent

to threats to regional

security and stability as

part of the Theater Security

Package (TSP) programme,

which has been a routine

and integral part of US

Pacific Command’s force

posture since March

2004. The deployment
      started on August 8,
      when the first three 176th
      EFS F-16Cs landed at
      Kunsan. Dave Allport
      Left: F-16C 87-0234 ‘WI’ from
      the 176th EFS ‘Badgers’
      along with three 8th Fighter
      Wing F-16Cs in ‘fi ngertip’
      formation. USAF/Senior
      Airman Colby L Hardin

ATAC at Beaufort

THE AIRBORNE Tactical

Advantage Company (ATAC)

spent two weeks at Marine

Corps Air Station Beaufort,

South Carolina in November.

The civilian contractor

provided adversary

training to help train F-35B

transition pilots with Marine

Fighter Attack Training

Squadron (VMFAT) 501.

As part of its training

syllabus, VMFAT-

makes use of ATAC or

Marine Fighter Training

Squadron (VMFT) 401 to

provide simulated Red

Air. ATAC brought Hawker

Hunter Mk58 aircraft and

Kfir aircraft to Beaufort,

together with four pilots

and eight maintainers.

An ATAC Kfi r taxis down

the fl ight line at MCAS

Beaufort on November

6. USMC/Cpl Benjamin
   McDonald