Jordan, U.S. exercise a success in Middle East

Published Nov. 5, 2010
By Tech. Sgt. Chyenne A. Adams
AFCENT Public Affairs

AZRAQ, JORDAN -- Falcon Air Meet 2010 was declared a joint multi-national success by military leaders from the United States Air Force and Navy, Royal Jordanian Air Force, United Arab Emirates Air Force, and Pakistan Air Force during closing ceremonies Nov. 2.

The two-week exercise, held at Azraq Royal Jordanian Air Base in the country of Jordan, brought men and women from various countries together to share their different cultures, reinforce standards, and build relationships, trust and respect, which is essential to working together to defeat a common enemy. A friendly competition was a highlight that provided unique training experience for all involved.

"Falcon Air Meet exercises modern warfare tactics and enforces international relationships," said RJAF Brig. Gen. Yousef Al-Hnaity, Azraq Air Base commander, "The competition simply provides a framework for this and helps to inspire excellence. Through the Falcon Air Meet, I have seen the sharing of knowledge and the formation of many valuable relationships. This warms my heart and gives me great hope for the future. Thank you very much for coming to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan with peace in your heart."

The Jordanians have invited the United States and other partners to this location for several years, but about four years ago the event became a more formal exercise and competition, with more nations participating each year.

The event previously was an F-16 flying competition, but recently has evolved into a more fully-rounded exercise with a concentration on modern warfare tactics and close air support operations. This involves deploying not just the aircraft and aviators to fly them, but a larger contingent of those on the ground to support the jets.

"One thing I can tell you as a wing commander is it's all about maintenance," said U.S. Air Force Col. Bob Bolton, commander of Air Force forces during the exercise, deployed from the 177th Fighter Wing, New Jersey Air National Guard. "You've got to have strong areas everywhere, but if you don't have strong maintenance, you don't meet your taskings. When you're in a strange environment, it's that much more stressful if things aren't working right. But the airplanes have been pretty much perfect here and that's made it easier for us to just concentrate on getting our mission done and getting the training done. Strong maintenance is a critical part of that."

U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Derrick Dudash agreed on the importance of maintainers.

"Our maintainers have just as much interaction with the Jordanian Air Force as we do as aviators, in fact probably more so," he said. "Because we rely on coordination with the Jordanian Air Force maintainers for some support equipment to do maintenance and the ability to work closely with them has been intricate and they've been extremely helpful in that regard."

The maintainers involved said it was a "dream come true" to hear such kudos for their work on the flightline.

"To hear everyone involved, including his royal highness, recognize us at an event like FAM is just a dream come true," said Senior Master Sgt. Richard Barbee, maintenance superintendent for the 80 maintainers deployed to the event from the 77th Aircraft Maintenance Unit, Shaw Air Force Base, S.C. "It's definitely something us 'behind-the-scene guys' will be taking back and spreading the word about."
His royal highness that Sergeant Beebee mentions is none other than Jordan's Prince Faisal bin Al Hussein, who was also present during the live fire competition hailed as the grand finale and closing ceremonies.
The grand finale included a special forces hostage rescue demonstration and bombing competition featuring jets from all involved countries and two B-52s from the U.S. Air Force.

The closing ceremonies Nov. 2 was the culmination of the entire exercise, with the presentation of awards and comments from senior leaders.

RJAF earned the overall FAM award and overall maintenance award, after securing a first place finish in the air-to-air intercept and air-to-ground competition categories. UAE took first place in the weapons load competition.

Colonel Bolton said during his closing remarks that the air meet should be renamed the 'Brothers for Life' competition because it seemed to be more about building relationships with those that had been so kind and generous in their hospitality. And "the key to peace" is getting those people together face-to-face, working side-by-side, according to the colonel.

Every other countries' senior leader who spoke shared that viewpoint, including the U.S. Navy, UAE and Pakistan.

"I would also like to echo the (Air Force commander's) remarks," said Prince Faisal during his closing remarks. "This meet is all about relationships. It has been a fantastically successful exercise because it is all about getting together, learning to work together, getting to know one another.

"Unfortunately, the world is not safe. There will be more and more opportunities where we will be working together as brothers in arms in defense of our nations. This was a great opportunity to build friendships that will last a lifetime. And don't underestimate the pressure every participant was under to keep conditions safe - a great accomplishment."

The safety comments were reflected in the wrap-up from the lead judge for the competition, who said there was a lot of potential for things to become unsafe but the professionalism of all the participants kept this large-scale, complex competition successful and safe.

"It was an amazing experience overall working with the RJAF and other countries," said Capt. Elijah Supper, F-16 pilot deployed out of the 77th Fighter Squadron, Shaw AFB, S.C. "Everyone learned how to get things done and get them done right, so everyone is leaving here as a more capable force than they came in. Just getting to be in this country is an amazing opportunity, but to fly with these partners in such a small piece of sky safely is a real accomplishment."

The entire Air Force contingent of more than 250 active-duty and Guard troops from more than 13 units across the service who maintained the small U.S. military compound on the grounds of the Jordanian air force base were was also recognized by Lt. Gen. Mike Hostage, U.S. Air Forces Central Command commander.

"All I've heard from General Yousef and the prince is about what a great job the American's are doing here," he said to the American troops gathered at the compound during his visit here. "Many of the people involved here actually have very little contact with Americans, so you are having a tremendous impact on what they think about U.S. forces. I'll live with the legacy you leave behind and I'm thankful you've done such a great job in your interactions, representing America."

Those involved said those interactions were easy, because of the incredible hospitality shown by the host nation.

"I've been to a lot of places around the world," said Sergeant Barbee. "The country of Jordan tops them all. The place is beautiful and the people are friendly. It has been an unforgettable experience coming here and one I hope to repeat."

Colonel Bolton said there just can't be enough said about our joint partner of Jordan.

"Wars happen because of misunderstandings," he said. "We've come here and shattered many pre-conceived notions, working shoulder-to-shoulder with the countries involved. We've built invaluable relationships and been made to feel at home here. I am truly thankful to the Jordanians for being such incredibly gracious hosts. I will maintain the friendships I've made here for the rest of my life."