FRANCIS S. GABRESKI AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, WESTHAMPTON BEACH, N.Y. – New York Air National Guard members assigned to the 106th Rescue Wing and 102nd Rescue Squadron participated in a multi-national readiness exercise across Europe, January 7 to 23, 2026.
Silver Arrow is an annual NATO exercise designed to improve interoperability and increase defense preparedness. It focuses on integrating tactics, systems, and procedures for combat effectiveness in the European Command (EUCOM) by bringing together forces from various NATO nations, including the United States, Canada, Latvia, Spain, Denmark, Italy, Poland and others.
The exercise is funded by the European Deterrence Initiative and specifically allocated to U.S. Air Forces in Europe for air reserve components, said Lt. Col. Richard Bloom, a pilot assigned to the 102nd and Silver Arrow mission commander. It facilitates aircraft to go over and do missions in Europe that help better the European defense.
Bloom explained there were many roles to play during the exercise. The 106th worked with the rescue forces that are permanently assigned to Aviano, Italy and performed forward arming and refueling point (FARP) operations with the Albanian Air Force, in Albania. In Germany the 106th trained with U.S. Special Forces doing airdrops and while working with our state partners in Sweden performed multiple other FARP operations, drop-zone (DZ) and landing-zone surveys.
Conducting FARP operations utilizes the ability of the HC-130J Combat King II aircraft to perform inflight refueling and puts that capability on the ground in environments where fuel is otherwise not available.
“We conducted the first ever FARP for the Albanian Air Force, we represented not only the U.S. Air Force and New York, but American armed forces as a whole,” said Lt. Col. Matthew Belton, a pilot assigned to the 102nd.
Further headway was made with significant improvement to 106th capabilities in Europe and in Sweden, a partner nation with the NYANG.
“Prior to arriving in Sweden there were only 19 total FARP surveys in the EUCOM, seven of which are in the United Kingdom,” said Belton. “We increased the EUCOM FARP capability by 26% by adding five FARP surveys in multiple strategic locations. In addition, we added six DZs to Sweden.”
During the exercise, 106th Rescue Wing aircraft and crews, with maintenance and support personnel, ensured a 100% launch rate, conducted 21 sorties, dropped 76 personnel, and passed 3,000 pounds of fuel.
“We didn’t miss a sortie,” said Technical Sgt. Mohammed Faroze the lead HC-130J Combat King II crew chief during Silver Arrow. ”We came in on our days off to get the plane flyable when we he had to.”
The exercise helped give Faroze a new perspective on the role his unit plays and the role he has, in global rescue operations and overall mission success.
“I saw the big picture in what we do at home with training, it just all tied into everything we do overseas,” Faroze explained. “We're constantly training at home, getting the plane ready, doing our due diligence, and as a result, we were able to not miss one sortie on this mission.”
According to Belton, other notable firsts this year at Silver Arrow were the first operational visit by the 102nd Rescue Squadron to Sweden and the first C-130 maintenance integration between the New York Air National Guard and Sweden. Also, the first visit for the 102nd Rescue Squadron to Spain, opening opportunities for further integration.
The 106th Rescue Wing, based at Francis S. Gabreski Air National Guard Base in Westhampton Beach, New York, operates and maintains the HC-130J Combat King II search and rescue aircraft, and the HH-60W Jolly Green II rescue helicopter. The 106th Rescue Wing is home to a special warfare squadron with pararescuemen and combat rescue officers, specializing in rescue and recovery, and deploys for domestic and overseas operations.