How RED FLAG-Alaska 26-1 is forging joint-force interoperability

RED FLAG-Alaska 26-1 wrapped up May 1 at Eielson Air Force Base after two weeks of realistic air combat training and dynamic flying operations. Eielson AFB and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson host the exercise, which leverages the expansive Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex to run joint and coalition tactical air combat employment scenarios matched to the capabilities of participating units.

“This exercise is a Pacific Air Forces sponsored event designed to provide realistic training in a simulated combat environment,” said Col. Kurt Distelzweig, RF-A 26-1 Deployed Forces commander. “This exercise provided us with a perfect time to meet with our joint partners to practice these training scenarios.”

About 1,150 service members and 55 aircraft from 14 units took part, exchanging tactics, techniques and procedures to sharpen interoperability.

“This iteration is emphasizing joint integration with our Navy and Marine partners,” said Capt. Landen Hoagland, 353rd Combat Training Squadron RF-A 26-1 team chief. “We got to practice escort seeding, dynamic targeting, and tracking threats throughout the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex.”

Training at JPARC is designed to support air and space superiority in the Indo-Pacific by allowing Airmen to prepare for the full spectrum of engagements, from individual skills to complex, large-scale joint missions.

“The JPARC provides miles of unrestricted airspace, complex terrain, along with some of the world’s most complex emitters,” said Hoagland. “This provides them with combat representative training they can’t find anywhere else.”

The exercise supports the U.S. military’s homeland defense mission by preparing forces to counter significant, persistent threats across multiple domains and approaches through layered, integrated defense.

“This exercise is important because it shows our partners that we are ready to rapidly deploy assets throughout the Pacific and assures them we are ready to fight when the time comes,” Hoagland said. “RF-A is a small piece in the grand scheme of things, but it’s an essential building block to our force, to project to the world that we are preparing for tomorrow’s fight.”

Additional iterations are expected later this year.