Synopsis
Air forces from 25 NATO Allies and partners have convened in Germany for Europe’s largest air exercise since the end of the Cold War.
Air Defender 23 features approximately 250 fighter jets, bombers and attack and support aircraft. Based in Germany, which is leading the exercise (though flights are taking place throughout Europe), the goal of the exercise is to practise integrating air operations on a large scale, ensuring Allies are able to deliver coordinated air power in the event of a crisis.
At Lechfeld Air Base in southern Germany, American A-10C Thunderbolt II attack jets are launching alongside Hellenic Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons. While the Greek jets are multirole fighters, the US Air National Guard A-10s are attack jets, specialising in ground combat missions like close air support and combat search-and-rescue.
Footage includes shots of Hellenic and US air force jets in flight and on the ground, as well as an interview with an officer from the US Air National Guard’s 190th Fighter Squadron.
Transcript
-- SHOTLIST --
(00:00) VARIOUS SHOTS – US AIR NATIONAL GUARD A-10C THUNDERBOLT II ATTACK JETS IN FLIGHT
(00:25) VARIOUS SHOTS – A-10s TAXIING TO PARKING POSITIONS AFTER LANDING
(00:51) VARIOUS SHOTS – HELLENIC AIR FORCE FIGHTER PILOT INSPECTING F-16 FIGHTING FALCON MULTIROLE FIGHTER
(01:16) VARIOUS SHOTS – F-16s PERFORMING FLY-BYS AND LANDING
(01:30) SOUNDBITE (English) US Air National Guard Major Jason Attinger, 190th Fighter Squadron
“Air Defender is the largest air exercise since the end of the Cold War, and it’s unique for us to be part of this large exercise, working with our NATO partners, up to 25 nations, I think 10,000 personnel total, and over 240 aircraft. So it’s a very big exercise, and it’s an honour for us to be part of it.”
(01:47) SOUNDBITE (English) US Air National Guard Major Jason Attinger, 190th Fighter Squadron
“For us, it’s just fostering those relationships with our NATO partners. It’s a German, Germany’s our host, but we’re getting to work with I think 25 other nations in total, and this is the best time to get together and to, you know, exercise those skills. It’s like a large force exercise, if you think of something like Red Flag out of Nellis [Air Force Base], but on an international scale, so it’s an even bigger exercise.
(02:09) SOUNDBITE (English) US Air National Guard Major Jason Attinger, 190th Fighter Squadron
“We like to say, ‘train like you fight,’ and that’s, you know, it’s kind of maybe an overstated thing, but it’s really, in my 25 years in the Air Force, I don’t think I’ve ever been on a single deployment where it’s just been unilateral, just the United States. There have always been, in some capacity, either joint or combined force, you with some other nation or some other service. So getting to do it out here, on their turf, and getting to work with them out of our comfort zone, of our own home base makes us that much better.”
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