RAAF F-35AS DEPLOY FOR ARNHEM THUNDER 21

摘要

ROYAL AUSTRALIAN Air Force (RAAF) F-35A Lightning IIs have been deployed for the first time to RAAF Base Darwin, Northern Territory, to participate in Exercise Arnhem Thunder 21. Ten F-35As from 3 Squadron arrived at the base on May 12 for the four-week event, which ran until June 15 and is one of the RAAF's largest domestic training exercises this year. Arnhem Thunder provided important force generation training, focusing on high-end collective training and involved multiple Force Element Groups (FEGs), operating out of RAAF Bases Darwin and Tindal. Around 50 aircraft and approximately 500 personnel were involved. The exercise also utilized the Mount Bundy Training Area and Delamere Air Weapons Range. Commander Air Combat Group, Air Commodore Tim Alsop, said the exercise focused on the group's interoperability with other FEGs (Air Mobility; Surveillance and Response; and Combat Support) in an offensive counter-air environment from a deployed location. He said: "Exposure to large-scale, multi-FEG scenarios in an away-base environment is of vital importance to the training outcomes of all elements across [the] air force."