Gulf Defender Friday, November 17, 2017 tyndall.af.mil gulfdefender.com 325FWTyndall 116ACW, JOINT STARS JOIN 131st FS Eagles soar into Tyndall CHECKERED FLAG 18-1 | PAGE 3 By Airman 1st Class Delaney Rose Team JSTARS 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs provides joint airborne command TYNDALL AIR FORCE and control, BASE — The 104th Fighter intelligence, Wing, 131st Fighter surveillance, and Squadron from Barnes Air reconnaissance over National Guard Base, Mas- land and water and sachusetts, deployed nearly provides combat 200 members and seven support forces to aircraft to participate in meet state and Checkered Flag 18-1 and national objectives. the concurrently running Weapons System Evalua- tion Program (WSEP) Com- CHECKERED FLAG bat Archer at Tyndall Air PICTURES Force Base. Nov. 6-17. | PAGES 8-9 Checkered Flag is a large-scale exercise that Checkered Flag integrates the war-fighting is a large-scale, power of both fourth and aerial total-force fifth- generation aircraft. exercise that The purpose of the exer- combines fourth cise is to provide a training and fi ft h-generation environment that simulates airframes enhancing realistic threats in order to the capabilities improve the proficiency of Airmen while and effectiveness of Air- training to rapidly men and maintain the respond to current, future of air superiority. real-world confl icts The 104th Fighter and preparing for Wing brought their Air- the future of air men and F-15C Eagles, a superiority. fourth generation aircraft, to continue their mis- sion of maintaining highly trained, well-equipped, and motivated military Commissary ............... 2 forces in order to provide Pics ........................8-9 combat-ready F-15 aircraft A U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagles from The 104th Fighter Wing, 131st Fighter Squadron from Barnes Nightlife ...................10 and support elements in Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts, sit parked on the fl ightline at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, Mountain Home ......... 11 response to wartime and prior to fl ying sorties Nov. 6. Barnes Air National Guard Base sent assets to Tyndall to participate in Classifieds ................ 12 exercise Checkered Flag 18-1 and Combat Archer. [U.S. AIR FORCE PHOTO BY AIRMAN 1ST CLASS ISAIAH J. SOLIZ/ See EAGLES, 2 RELEASED] 2 Friday, November 17, 2017 | Gulf Defender EAGLES From Page 1 peacetime tasking’s under state and federal authority. “Over a two-week period, our F-15C Eagle's will be flying Large Force Exercise dissimilar combat training missions during Checkered Flag 18-1,” said Lt. Col. Jeffrey Beckel, 131st Fighter Squadron commander. The F-15C is a tactical fighter aircraft designed to maneuver with ease and operate under a vari- ety of climate conditions. The ingenuity and power of the F-15C contributes to the Air Force mission of air dominance; how- ever, in order to truly achieve mission suc- cess, fourth-generation aircraft must maintain operational cohesion with fifth-generation aircraft. “We will be executing Fighter Integration mis- sions with fifth genera- A U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagles from The 104th Fighter Wing, 131st Fighter Squadron from Barnes Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts, tion F-22 Raptor and F-35 fl ies over the fl ightline at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., Nov. 6 . Barnes Air National Guard Base sent assets to Tyndall to participate in exercise Lightning II aircraft Checkered Flag 18-1 and Combat Archer. [U.S. AIR FORCE PHOTO BY AIRMAN 1ST CLASS ISAIAH J. SOLIZ/RELEASED] during Defensive Counter Air, Offensive Counter Training against con- readiness through ready “We will be executing Fighter Integration missions with Air-Escort and Cruise flicts that exist in today’s Airmen and ready weapons fi fth generation F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II aircraft Missile Defense mis- society plays an integral systems. This task is com- during Defensive Counter Air, Off ensive Counter Air-Escort sions,” Beckel said. “The part in preparing Airmen pleted through large-scale and Cruise Missile Defense missions. The complexity of complexity of these mis- to respond quickly during exercises such as Checkered these missions can only be replicated at a FLAG- level event sions can only be repli- real-world operations. Flag, giving Airmen a feel for of this caliber.” cated at a FLAG- level Air Combat Command’s deployments in a safe and event of this caliber.” goal is to improve squadron controlled environment. Lt. Col. Jeffrey Beckel, 131st Fighter Squadron commander Thanksgiving Commissary hours of operation U.S. Air Force Thanksgiving Day, the Tyndall note the following changes to a.m.-5 p.m.Monday-Wednes- Friday Nov. 23-24 (Thanksgiv- Commissary will be augmenting Commissary hours of business. day Nov. 20-22, 9 a.m.-6 ing) OpenSaturday Nov. 25 from In acknowledgement of its hours of operation. Please OpenSunday Nov. 19, 10 p.m. ClosedThursday and 9 a.m.-6 p.m. AT YOUR SERVICE HOW TO SUBMIT NEWS Force Base is tyndall.af.mil. The offi cial news source for NSA-PC regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, martial How to place a classifi ed ad Tyndall Public Affairs is cnic.navy.mil/regions/cnrse/installations/nsa_panama_city. status, physical handicap, political affi liation or any other Gulf Phone: 850-747-5020 850-283-4500 html. non-merit factor of the purchaser, user or patron. 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Gamboa National Guard component of properly trained Airmen 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs of Team JSTARS with the with the necessary equipment. active duty 461st ACW and Exercises like Checkered Flag TYNDALL AIR FORCE Army JSTARS contributing and aircraft like the E-8C give BASE — Team JSTARS out personnel to the mission. Airmen the ability to main- of Robins Air Force Base, To accompany the wing’s tain readiness at all times. Georgia, is flying an E-8C mission, the E-8C Joint “If JSTARS didn't exist, Joint Surveillance Target STARS provides theater combatant commanders Attack Radar System in sup- ground and air command- would lose the wide area port of Checkered Flag 18-1 ers with ground surveillance capability for the dual-sided hosted by the 44th Fighter to support attack operations intelligence, surveillance, Group at Tyndall Nov. 6-17 . and targeting that contributes reconnaissance, and com- Checkered Flag is a large- An E-8C Joint STARS taxis down the runway during a morning to the delay, disruption and mand and control that Joint scale, aerial total-force exer- mission at Robins Air Force Base, Ga., July 20 . Team JSTARS, destruction of enemy forces. STARS offers,” Parsons cise that combines fourth and consisting of the 116th Air Control Wing (ACW), Georgia Air “The E-8C Joint STARS said. “Essentially, it would fifth-generation airframes National Guard, active-duty 461st ACW and Army JSTARS, provides is the world's only weapon take multiple aircraft to see enhancing the capabilities of joint airborne command and control, intelligence, surveillance, system of its type,” said the same area that one E-8C Airmen while training to rap- and reconnaissance support over land and water to combatant Senior Master Sgt. Roger Joint STARS can see alone.” idly respond to current, real- commanders around the globe. The Total Force Integration unit Parsons, 116th ACW Pub- Checkered Flag provides world conflicts and preparing operates the world’s only Joint STARS weapon system based out of lic Affairs superintendent. a platform for Airmen and for the future of air superiority. Robins Air Force Base. [U.S. AIR NATIONAL GUARD PHOTO BY SENIOR MASTER “When combatant com- aircraft, like Joint STARS, to Team JSTARS provides SGT. ROGER PARSONS] manders need simultane- train in simulated real-world joint airborne command and ous wide-area surveillance scenarios to continue enhanc- control, intelligence, surveil- land and water and provides state and national objectives. and command and control, ing their mission and synergize lance, and reconnaissance over combat support forces to meet The 116th Air Control Wing JSTARS is their first choice.” Total Force Integration. 4 Friday, November 17, 2017 | Gulf Defender 79th FS ‘Tigers’ roar in Raptor Country By Senior Airman Flag while units are here, Solomon Cook they are getting experi- 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs ences of what a warfighter sees in a simulated envi- TYNDALL AFB — As the ronment,” Lee added.