Photo By Airman 1st Class Joseph Maye | U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brandon Solidum, 154th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron crew...... read more read more
Subscribe
NORTHERN TERRITORY, Australia – More than 1,200 Airmen from across the U.S. Air Force joined together and operated as the 154th Air Expeditionary Wing (AEW) during Talisman Sabre 25, showcasing seamless integration and rapid deployment power.
Since its inception in 2005, Talisman Sabre is the U.S.’s largest exercise with Australia that demonstrates interoperability between the nations. This year’s iteration is the largest ever conducted with more than 40,000 military personnel from 19 nations.
Air expeditionary wings are flexible units temporarily activated and tailored to meet specific mission objectives. At Talisman Sabre 25, the 154th AEW encompassed aircrew as well as services, security forces, communications, and maintenance Airmen.
“Serving as the command-and-control element supporting the 13th Air Expeditionary Task Force, the 154th AEW successfully executed its mission of projecting combat power, enabling global mobility, and maintaining critical communications throughout the Australian area of responsibility,” said U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Kurt Uchimura, 154 AEW command chief, Hawaii Air National Guard.
The Wing was separated into six smaller squadrons and based around Australia to accomplish varying joint training objectives.
“The logistical demands of preparing, staging, moving, and integrating forces in and around Australia were unprecedented in complexity for this exercise,” Uchimura said.
One of the squadrons within the AEW, the 203rd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron, flew KC-135 Stratotankers providing in-flight air refueling support to U.S., Australian and other nation’s aircraft.
Successful missions in the airspace begin with extensive planning on the ground. For pilots like U.S. Capt. Michael Ah Hee, 203rd Air Refueling Squadron KC-135 pilot, collaborating with international partners proved essential.
“Planning with our international partners, mainly the British and Australian air forces, has been crucial because despite us all having refuellers, we do have slightly different methods,” Ah Hee said.
“Being able to put our heads together and learn how to operate together in a forward deployment area is a very crucial skill that we need to have. Talisman Sabre has been a great exercise to flex those muscles and build upon previous knowledge,” Ah Hee continued.
All the planning’s purpose came to fruition for the 203 EARS as the unit logged 13 sorties and offloaded 422,000 pounds of fuel to 39 U.S. and allied aircraft.
Beyond the flightline, Airmen from the intelligence office had a chance to integrate with their counterparts from partner nations.
U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Erin Mello, 154 AEW mobility air force intelligence officer in charge, is new to the international training environment and said working alongside allied counterparts revealed areas for improvement.
“Sometimes even little things, like our computer systems, are different and don’t talk to each other easily,” Mello explained.
In the end, Mello and her Australian counterparts worked together to develop a plan to ensure information could still flow directly to the USAF’s KC-135 crews’ mission planners.
“Moving forward, the lessons learned during Talisman Sabre 25 will be instrumental in refining our tactics, techniques, and procedures, ensuring all forces assigned to the 154th AEW remain ready and capable Total Force partners, committed to seamless collaboration and enhanced operational effectiveness alongside our Australian allies,” Uchimura said.
| Date Taken: | 07.27.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 08.02.2025 01:00 |
| Story ID: | 543946 |
| Location: | NORTHERN TERRITORY, AU |
| Web Views: | 61 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, U.S. Airmen Unite as Expeditionary Wing in Australian Exercise, by TSgt Madison Scaringe, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
