US Air Force, RAAF participate in Diamond Storm exercise

The 23rd Expeditionary Bomb Squadron (EBS), forward deployedfrom U.S. Anderson Air Force Base, Guam, and the California Air NationalGuard’s 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron out of Fresno, California, providedtraining support to the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during exerciseDiamond Storm May 6 to 26, 2019.

Exercise Diamond Storm is a continuation of exercisesDiamond Shield and Diamond Seas, with the three exercises designed to qualifyRAAF pilots at the Australian Air Warfare Instructor Course (AWIC) and promotetraining under the Enhanced Air Cooperation (EAC).

EAC is part of the U.S.-Australian Force Posture Initiativesto increase integration between the U.S. Department of Defense’s air elements andthe Australian Defense Force, improving each country’s ability to operatetogether. EAC initiatives focus on activities in Australia’s north but couldinclude activities throughout Australia and around the region.

“Exercise Diamond Storm is all about partnership andbuilding relationships,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. John Burrell, 23rd EBScommander. “It’s about the interoperability between U.S. and Australian forces,so we can learn to train together, work together and fight together.”

The 23rd EBS deployed B-52 Stratofortesses to simulatetargeted bomb strikes for the exercise.

“We get to be the primary strike platform along with theAustralian F-18s and Growlers,” said Burrell. “We’ve learned a lot from theAustralians while being here and as a part of this strike team. This type oftraining is key to our partnership, and we want to build upon that.”

With the 23rd EBS providing air-to-ground support, the 194thEFS and their F-15C Eagles provided air-to-air support via offensivecounter-air training.

“We have about 40 to 50 aircraft on the blue side [mainforce] and a really large number of red air [opposition] replicating a veryadvanced threat, which is great training for us,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col.Christopher Ridlon, 194th EFS commander. “When you are red air, you are flyingas though you’re an enemy airplane, and we change our tactics to be similar towhat our enemy would use. The training itself has been on both sides justbecause you are seeing different capabilities of different aircraft.”

These training opportunities allowed the 23rd EBS and 194thEFS to team up with a dozen RAAF units to coordinate joint mission planningtogether.

“Every blue mission we plan, we are conducting combinedmission planning with our Australian allies,” said Ridlon. “We get to talk in aclassified environment and share our tactics and capabilities with each other.That has been a great part to helping us build a relationship with them.”

At the end of the exercise, the RAAF graduated 28 officersfrom the AWIC, a course designed to strengthen the ability of the AustralianDefence Force.

“The candidates of this course have been exposed to a verycomplex environment, and we try to push them to their absolute limit,” saidRAAF Group Capt. Matthew McCormack, Diamond Storm exercise director. “Oncethese graduates get back into their operating units, they basically provide allthat information and knowledge they got from the course back into those units.Everyone gains from this.”

Through Diamond Storm, U.S. and Australian Airmen continue to bolster their relationship, strive to increase readiness and enhance future integration to strengthen security cooperation in the region.

Source: US Air Force