Six nations, 2,100 troops train over Alaska in RF-A 26-2

RED FLAG-Alaska 26-2

RED FLAG-Alaska 26-2 concluded June 12 at Eielson Air Force Base and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, closing out two weeks of coalition air combat training that drew six nations, more than 70 aircraft, and more than 2,100 service members across 120,000 square miles of Alaskan airspace. The exercise began May 28 and focused on coalition air-to-ground, special operations, and tactical airlift training with limited air-to-air and surface-to-air threats.

The Republic of Singapore Air Force joined British, Canadian, New Zealand, and U.S. components. International participation was the primary distinction of this iteration compared with others held throughout the year. More than 300 paratroopers from the 11th Airborne Division conducted live airborne operations at Donnelly Drop Zone near Delta Junction.

"RED FLAG 26-2 with its allies and partners did extraordinarily well," said Col. Christopher Austin, the deployed forces commander. "The difficulty of the scenarios we had in RED FLAG 26 were of the highest level. We kept it safe. We kept it smart. We grew a whole bunch of mission commanders and pilots that have never flown at this level before." Austin, who has observed roughly 20 Red Flag exercises, added: "I've probably seen about 20 flags, and this is truly the best training that I have ever seen in all of those exercises."

A central focus of the exercise was building interoperability with allies and partners while sustaining operational deployment capabilities. Officials noted that readiness gains made by participating nations would strengthen security beyond Alaska.