John Currin
15 years in Royal New Zealand Navy
Red Flag: RAF Typhoon jets arrive in US to be tested in huge multinational air combat exercise
16th January 2024 at 3:06pm
RAF Typhoon combat aircraft have arrived in Nevada for a multinational exercise described as “the world’s toughest air combat training environment”.
Exercise Red Flag, held at Nellis Air Force Base in the western United States, involves advanced aerial combat drills to prepare aircrew for challenging warfighting scenarios.
The high-intensity training involves aircrew from the UK, US and Australia take part in the drills, which run from 15 January to 2 February.
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In a post on social media platform X, Nato Air Command said: “#NATO member [UK] & partner [Australia] have arrived for exercise Red Flag in [USA] highlighting the trans-atlantic & pacific link together.
“Red Flag exercises provide aircrews the experience of multiple, intensive air combat sorties in the safety of a training environment.”
The Australian government, which described it as the world’s “toughest” air combat training, said Red Flag is invaluable for the participants.
Last year, the RAF joined the US and Australia for the biggest Allied combat air exercise ever, which was designed to ensure the forces are prepared for the threat posed by China.
Red Flag began almost half a century ago when the US military realised from its experiences in Vietnam that if pilots survived their first 10 missions, the chances were they would survive the war.
The exercise was born to simulate those first 10 sorties.
US Submarine V-2 – Boston Navy Yard 1927
USS Bass (SF-5/SS-164), a Barracuda-class submarine and one of the “V-boats”, was the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for the bass. Her keel was laid at the Portsmouth Navy Yard. She was launched as V-2 (SF-5) on 27 December 1924 sponsored by Mrs. Douglas E. Dismukes, wife of Captain Dismukes, and commissioned on 26 September 1925, Lieutenant Commander G.A. Rood in command. Like her sisters, Bass was designed to meet the fleet submarine requirement of 21 knots (39 km/h) surface speed for operating with contemporary battleships.
