Air Guardsmen and F-16s Train with Polish Air Force

Six F-16s and nearly 100 airmen from the Wisconsin Air National Guard’s 115th Fighter Wing in Madison are training alongside their Polish air force counterparts during a two-week deployment to Lask AB, Poland, according to US officials. This is the first rotation of F-16s to Lask since the standup of the US aviation detachment in Poland last November, states a May 16 release from the detachment. This exchange, which runs through May 24, is meant to enhance the skills of US and Polish F-16 pilots through flying simulated air combat scenarios with other aircraft, including Polish MiG-29s and Su-22s. “We’re doing things like air combat maneuvers, basic fighter maneuvers, and tactical intercepts,” said Lt. Col. Brian Parker, 176th Fighter Squadron commander. “It’s a building-block approach, so we’ll start out with the basics and increase the tactics as we go through the two weeks,” he said. The next fighter exchange is slated for July when F-16s from Aviano AB, Italy, come to Poland for air-to-ground training, states the release. In February, airmen from Ramstein AB, Germany conducted the first rotation of C-130Js to Powidz Air Base a part of the aviation detachment’s activities. (Lask report by TSgt. Kenya Shiloh) (Includes Spangdahlem report by SMSgt. Sarah Webb)