Israeli, American air forces conclude joint exercise
The two-week annual Juniper Falcon exercise saw Israeli and American F-15 fighter jets practice evading and destroying enemy anti-aircraft missiles and planes; 'we incorporated the most advanced threats we see in the region in this exercise,' says IAF official.
Dozens of Israeli and American fighter jets concluded the joint annual Juniper Falcon exercise this weekend, during which they simulated different operational scenarios.
The main objective for the fighter jets training over southern Israel was to destroy mobile enemy targets (such as anti-aircraft missiles).
The Israeli and American pilots also practiced evading advanced aerial defense measures and enemy fighter jets that were trying to disrupt the mission.
Some 30 fighter jets participated in each sortie. They did not use live fire, but rather drilled different scenarios against one another, with some of the jets on the offensive and others on the defensive.
The exercise included F-15 planes, the biggest among the IDF's fighter jets, from the Israel Air Force's 69th Squadron, which flew alongside American F-15 planes.
The exercise lasted two weeks. It constitutes part of a series of joint training exercises between the two nations' air forces in recent years.
The IAF's next major training exercise will be Blue Flag later this year and include other regional air forces.
"The training exercise was complex, with a deepening cooperation, and led by the IAF's Red Squadron," said a senior IAF officer. "This training exercise is important as we face the situation around us, the dynamic nature of the different fighting fronts in the area, and operations by world powers—all of these create uncertainty. In this exercise, we incorporated the most advanced threats we see in the region."
