More than 175 Air Force Reservists and eight C-130s will participate in Canada’s annual Maple Flag Exercise at the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range in Alberta. The Reservists are assigned to C-130 and airlift control element units at Dobbins ARB, Ga., Niagara Falls ARS, N.Y., Minneapolis ARS, Minn., and Peterson AFB, Colo., according to a Dobbins release. “This is an invaluable training opportunity for the Air Force Reserve,” said CMSgt. Scott Yoder, 700th Airlift Squadron superintendent. “Not only does it allow us to train in a combined and joint setting, but it also provides us with a realistic venue to implement lessons learned from recent operations overseas.” The two-week exercise kicked off on May 24 and will run through June 7. Participants will train in a “wide variety of missions sets, [including] transport, electronic warfare, air defense, and airborne early warning control assets,” states the release. NATO fighter aircraft typically join the exercise, but “due to real world commitments, the normal NATO fighter aircraft will not participate this year,” states the release.
Air Force F-16 pilots are testing out new sensors that could help maximize their performance and avoid deadly accidents while flying fast fighter jets under heavy G-forces and stressful conditions.