The Air Force Weapons School at Nellis AFB, Nev., hosted its fifth bi-annual mobility air forces exercise last week—an opportunity for students to plan and execute a joint forcible entry airborne assault operation. This latest MAFEX comprised some 1,500 service members and more than 50 aircraft, including C-17s, C-130s, F-15Es, and HH-60s. The airlifters dropped soldiers from the 82nd Airborne at Ft. Bragg, N.C., within tight time lines and drop zones. Capt. Daniel Hilferty, one of the student planners, said, “The level of coordination is unbelievable; we are bringing aircraft that are taking off from across the country to the Nevada Test and Training Range with an arrival time flexible only by a minute and giving these aircrew a target drop zone of only 100 yards to drop their troops and gear.” He added, “From what I’ve seen so far, we have been on point with everything.” (Nellis report by A1C Michael Charles; Nellis report by SrA. Ryan Whitney; Charleston AFB, S.C., report by SSgt. Daniel Bowles)
Multiple U.S. Air Force F-15 fighters have deployed to the strategic outpost of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean to protect the myriad of assets deployed there, including strategic bombers.