Green Flag-West 09-10, begins Sept. 11

  • Published
  • By Tech Sgt. Aileen Carter
  • Nellis Public Affairs
Southern Nevada and Southern California residents will see increased military aircraft activity as the Air Force begins Green Flag West 09-10, Friday, Sept. 11. 

Missions will be flown between 3 p.m. and midnight beginning Sept. 13 to Sept. 24, and will take place at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif. The exercise's flight path includes areas within the Las Vegas valley to Nellis and the NTC, near Mount Charleston, and north of Pahrump, Nev., and the Mojave Desert in both Inyo and San Bernadino Counties in Calif.

Conducted by the 549th Combat Training Squadron at Nellis, and the 12th Combat Training Squadron at Fort Irwin, Calif., Green Flag-West provides a realistic close air support training environment for Airmen and Soldiers preparing to deploy in support of combat operations in Southwest Asia. 

Green Flag exercises provides units with training on a scale not available at or near home stations. During this exercise, current irregular warfare conditions in Iraq and Afghanistan are replicated. 

Aircrews will work closely with the U.S. Marine Corps' air naval gunfire liaison companies embedded with the 1st Armored Division to protect nearly 6,000 Soldiers and 400 armored and support vehicles from opposing enemy forces in a 1,000 square-mile area. 

Units from the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and allied nations regularly participate in Green Flag-West, which takes place 10 times annually.

Participants in Green Flag-West 09-10 include F-16 Falcons from the 4th Fighter Squadron, Hill AFB, Utah; B-1 Lancers from the 34th Bomb Squadron, Ellsworth AFB, S.D.; E-3 Sentries from the 965th Air Control Squadron, Tinker AFB, Okla.; MQ-1 Predators and MQ-9 Reapers from the 432d Wing, Creech AFB, Nev.; and an AC-130 Spectre from the16th Special Operations Squadron, Cannon AFB, N.M. These units will be supporting the 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Fort Bliss, Texas; the 10th Special Forces Group, Fort Carson, Colo.; and the 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, Camp Pendleton, Calif. 

For more information, contact Nellis Public Affairs at (702) 652-2750.





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