NATOs mange F-35 lærer fra deployeringer til det østlige Europa - Defence Connect

 

Learning lesson from US F-35s deployed to NATO

 

STRIKE & AIR COMBAT

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11 APRIL 2023

By: Reporter

The US Air Force has used the latest deployment of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters to protect NATO’s eastern borders as an important learning exercise with the aircraft gathering critical adversarial information. 

Active US Air Force personnel attached to the 388th Fighter Wing and reserve personnel from the US Air Force Reserve’s 419th Fighter Wing have been at the forefront of NATO’s air defence mission over the eastern skies of Europe, with one critical mission: learn as much about Russian weapons systems as possible. 

In doing so, the deployed F-35s leveraged the extensive sensor fusion capabilities of the platform to vacuum up as much electronic data as possible from the surface-to-air missiles and aircraft dotting eastern Europe to build a map to guide NATO operations — and if the situation spilled into NATO countries, to add some muscle.

Colonel Craig Andrle, 388th Fighter Wing Commander, said during an interview with the US Air Force Times, “We weren’t crossing the border. We’re not shooting anything or dropping anything. But the jet is always sensing, gathering information. And it was doing that very, very well.”

The mission gave the US Air Force a chance to hone its new short-notice approach to deployments.

The air defence and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) missions also illustrated advances in the F-35′s ability to communicate with the joint force and quickly adjust to unrecognised threats, in doing so, it offered new insight into what the jets are still missing, as the military warns of future fights with Russia or China.

Under the new force-generation model, squadrons are supposed to move through four six-month phases: resetting from their most recent travel, training locally as a unit, participating in larger exercises, and going on alert.

This approach aims to give units enough time to rest, train, and maintain their jets between deployments.