About 300 airmen and 16 F-15C Eagles deployed to Estonia Monday to take part in a multilateral training exercise as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve. Twelve F-15Cs from the 493rd Fighter Squadron at RAF Lakenheath and four from the 194th Expeditionary Squadron—deployed to Campia Turzi, Romania, in support of a theater security package sent to Europe—will train with air forces from Estonia, Finland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom until September 2, according to a 48th Fighter Wing release. Eight A-10s, a KC-135, and more than 200 airmen from bases around the US and Europe recently finished up a two-week deployment to the Baltic nation.
The six-week government shutdown did not affect the hours flown by Air Force pilots, a service spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine—avoiding what could have been a major blow at a time when flying hours are already lower than they have been in decades.
