Photo By Airman 1st Class Alexis Schultz | U.S. and Italian soldiers wait to load onto a C-17 Globemaster III as part of Saber...... read more read more
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U.S. Air Force aircraft engines roar through the air as pilots look for the marked drop zone; in the back of the aircraft U.S. Army paratroopers, along with paratroopers from four other nations, eagerly await for there signal to appear above the cargo door.
“GO! GO! GO,” a jumpmaster screams as the jump light changes from red to green.
This may only be training, but the performances of each military branch and service member is integral to the success of the missions during Saber Junction 18.
Saber Junction 18 is part of an annual exercise series, and is a USAREUR-directed exercise designed to assess the readiness of the U.S. Army’s 173rd Airborne Brigade to execute unified land operations in a joint, combined environment and to promote interoperability with participating allies and partner nations.
While USAREUR led the charge during the exercise, USAFE provided the airlift capability with C-130H Hercules and a C-17 Globemaster to assist the Army in completing their training objectives.
"The Air Force has been a huge help," said U.S. Army Maj. J. Christopher Giorgi, Saber Junction 18 lead planner. "You can't do joint force entry without the airlift component."
With aircraft support from USAFE, thousands of troops from the 173rd dropped within a few hours to kickoff a large scale exercise.
"Airmen have been integrated since day one of planning to assist," said Giorgi. "With this integration, we can put an air brigade behind enemy lines within 18 hours. I don't believe many others can do that."
The U.S. will be exercising alongside 19 ally and partner nations to increase operational efficiency.
| Date Taken: | 09.20.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 09.20.2018 18:03 |
| Story ID: | 293785 |
| Location: | HOHENFELS, DE |
| Web Views: | 87 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Air Force assists Army during Saber Junction 18, by SSgt Milton Hamilton, TSgt Jimmie Pike and A1C Alexis Schultz, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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