North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe
February 14, 2014
NATO AND PARTNER FIGHTER JETS SOAR OVER ICELAND
Finnish Air Force F/A-18C/D Hornet from 21 HävLLv Satakunnan Lennosto, takes off during the Iceland Air Meet 2014, Keflavik International Airport
Iceland’s cold winter skies have been set afire with the roar of afterburners as pilots from NATO and partner nations conduct air defence-related flying during the Iceland Air Meet 2014. The event kicked-off on 3 February and is expected to continue until 21 February.
Combat jets from several nations are regularly streaking across the skies over the rugged terrain and coastline of the Arctic nation…Allied air crews and staff from Iceland, Norway, the Netherlands, and the United States, together with partners from Finland and Sweden are conducting advanced training including air combat, counter-air operations, and high-value asset protection manoeuvers.
“Thanks to this training event, our pilots, ground crews and fighter controllers will be better trained, more experienced, and better able to deploy and operate together, if needed,” NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said.
The ability to operate with countries from beyond the Alliance is one of NATO’s core capabilities. The training event, which reinforces key elements of Nordic defence cooperation, strengthens that ability.
Pilots from Norway, Finland and Sweden are flying fighter aircraft and support aircraft during the meet. The United States and the Netherlands are operating air-to-air refueling assets, with Sweden also providing dedicated air-to-air support in location. Iceland is providing host nation support, including Search and Rescue capabilities.
The training is critical for the participating nations as air operations are highly complex, and require an advance level of coordination and interoperability.
“Training to date has been highly realistic and reinforced previous cross-border co-operation,” said Colonel Geir Wiik, the Training Director from Norway. “Every opportunity we get to work with aircrews from other nations, using NATO standard procedures in a realistic training environment enhances our ability to work effectively together as a cohesive team,” he said.
This will be the first time that Finland and Sweden have deployed to Iceland and the focus of the Air Meet is to improve interoperability and to further strengthen Nordic defence cooperation between NATO members and partners.
As part of the training on 13 February, Finnish military helicopters from the Utti Jaeger Regiment, Lentoportintie conducted a search and rescue exercise under the guidance of the Icelandic Coast Guard. Icelandic personnel supervised winching drills both from an Icelandic vessel and from the sea where different techniques were successfully used.
“As a partner nation, this is a tremendous opportunity for us to practice our procedures whilst operating with NATO and other partners,” said Major Tuuka Elonheimo, a Detachment Commander with the Finnish Air Force. “For my helicopter contingent, the opportunity to operate from Iceland has allowed us to experience much harsher weather conditions… winching in heavy seas and extreme winds are not things we are used to off the coast of Finland,” he said.
NATO has also deployed its Airborne Warning And Control System (AWACS) aircraft in order to exercise effective command and control of the airspace over Iceland during the exercise. NATO operates a fleet of Boeing E-3A ‘Sentry’ Airborne Warning & Control System (AWACS) aircraft, which provide the Alliance with an immediately available airborne command and control, air and maritime surveillance and battlespace management capability. The NE-3A is a modified Boeing 707 equipped with long-range radar and passive sensors capable of detecting air and surface contacts over large distances. The plot-extracted track data can be transmitted directly from the aircraft to other users on land, at sea or in the air. The NATO Airborne Early Warning and Control Force (NAEW&C Force) is one of the few military assets that is actually owned and operated by NATO. It is the Alliance’s largest collaborative venture and is an example of what NATO member countries, in this case 17 nations, can achieve by pooling resources and working together in a truly multinational environment.
NATO is coordinating the Air Meet through its combined air operations centre (CAOC) in Uedem, Germany with Norway as the sponsor providing the training director and CRC staff for the event. The Finnish and Swedish aircraft are under his operational control for the duration of the Air Meet.
The Iceland Air Meet 2014 takes advantage of Norway’s concurrent deployment to Iceland to conduct NATO’s mission to provide airborne surveillance and interception capabilities to meet Iceland’s peacetime preparedness needs. However, the Air Meet is separate and distinct from that mission, which is only ever conducted by NATO Allies.
Story by SHAPE Public Affairs Office
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