Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      A California Air National Guard F-15C Eagle takes off from the flightline on Graf Ignatievo, Bulgaria, Sept. 8, 2016. Four of the 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron’s F-15Cs will conduct joint NATO air policing missions with the Bulgarian air force to police the host nation’s sovereign airspace Sept. 9-16, 2016. The squadron forward deployed to Graf Ignatievo from Campia Turzii, Romania, where they serve on a theater security package deployment to Europe as a part of Operation Atlantic Resolve. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden)Bulgaria, US commence joint air policing
                        
                        
                        A California Air National Guard F-15C Eagle takes off from the flightline on Graf Ignatievo, Bulgaria, Sept. 8, 2016. Four of the 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron’s F-15Cs conducted joint NATO air policing missions with the Bulgarian Air Force to police the host nation’s sovereign airspace Sept. 9-16, 2016. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        California Air National Guard Master Sgt. Audra Jimenez, a 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron weapons craftsman, affixes an AIM-120 advanced medium-range air-to-air missile onto an F-15C Eagle fighter aircraft on the flightline at Graf Ignatievo, Bulgaria, Sept. 8, 2016. Four of the squadron’s F-15Cs will conduct joint NATO air policing missions with the Bulgarian air force to police the host nation’s sovereign airspace Sept. 9-16, 2016. The squadron forward deployed to Graf Ignatievo from Campia Turzii, Romania, where they serve on a theater security package deployment to Europe as a part of Operation Atlantic Resolve. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden)Bulgaria, US commence joint air policing
                        
                        
                        California Air National Guard Master Sgt. Audra Jimenez, a 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron weapons craftsman, affixes an AIM-120 advanced medium-range air-to-air missile onto an F-15C Eagle at Graf Ignatievo, Bulgaria, Sept. 8, 2016. The squadron forward deployed to Graf Ignatievo from Campia Turzii, Romania, in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        California Air National Guard Maj. Brett Faber, a 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron F-15C Eagle fighter aircraft pilot, looks at the controls of his aircraft on the flightline at Graf Ignatievo, Bulgaria, Sept. 8, 2016. Four of the squadron’s F-15Cs will conduct joint NATO air policing missions with the Bulgarian air force to police the host nation’s sovereign airspace. The squadron forward deployed to Graf Ignatievo from Campia Turzii, Romania, where they serve on a theater security package deployment to Europe as a part of Operation Atlantic Resolve. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden)Bulgaria, US commence joint air policing
                        
                        
                        Maj. Brett Faber, a 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron F-15C Eagle pilot, performs pre-flight checks at Graf Ignatievo, Bulgaria, Sept. 8, 2016. Four of the squadron’s F-15Cs conducted joint NATO air policing missions with the Bulgarian Air Force to police the host nation’s sovereign airspace. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        California Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Zechery Blackburn, a 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron crew chief, signals to the pilot of an F-15C Eagle fighter aircraft on the flightline at Graf Ignatievo, Bulgaria, Sept. 8, 2016. Four of the squadron’s F-15Cs will conduct joint NATO air policing missions with the Bulgarian air force to police the host nation’s sovereign airspace Sept. 9-16, 2016. The squadron forward deployed to Graf Ignatievo from Campia Turzii, Romania, where they serve on a theater security package deployment to Europe as a part of Operation Atlantic Resolve. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden)Bulgaria, US commence joint air policing
                        
                        
                        Sgt. Zechery Blackburn, a 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron crew chief, marshals an F-15C Eagle at Graf Ignatievo, Bulgaria, Sept. 8, 2016. Four of the squadron’s F-15Cs conducted joint NATO air policing missions with the Bulgarian Air Force to police the host nation’s sovereign airspace Sept. 9-16, 2016. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Bulgaria, US commence joint air policingPublished Sept. 12, 2016
                    
                    By Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden
                    
                    
                    52nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs
            **GRAF IGNATIEVO, Bulgaria (AFNS) --**The U.S. and Bulgarian air forces are conducting a joint NATO air policing mission in Bulgaria Sept. 9-16, which enables on-demand response capabilities that serve to mitigate and deter violations and infringements on Bulgarian sovereign airspace.
Working alongside the Bulgarian Air Force are four F-15C Eagles from the California and Massachusetts Air National Guards, along with approximately 75 Airmen from the 194th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron.
“It’s quite an honor to be the first-ever U.S. or NATO participant here in Bulgaria for this mission,” said Lt. Col. Matthew Ohman, a 194th EFS F-15C pilot. “It’s awesome just to be able to work with the people here who have gone out of their way to really facilitate our being here.”
The Bulgarian Parliament approved joint national air policing in February 2016. The U.S. Air Force has regularly supported NATO allies to defend their airspace in line with security commitments to NATO.  The 194th EFS previously conducted joint air policing in Iceland in March 2016, which marked the first of its kind under the concurrent Operation Atlantic Resolve mission.
The 194th EFS aircraft forward deployed to Graf Ignatievo from Campia Turzii, Romania, where the squadron serves as a theater security package deployment to Europe as a part of OAR.
The squadron represents a total force endeavor, comprised of ANG and Air Force Reserve Airmen from the 144th Fighter Wing at Fresno Air National Guard Base, California, and the 104th Fighter Wing at Barnes ANGB, Massachusetts, alongside active-duty Airmen in support roles from the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany.
“This is something that we do naturally back in Fresno at the 144th (Fighter Wing),” said Lt. Col. Cesar Gonzalez, a 194th EFS aircraft maintenance commander. “Our Guardsmen protect, and we’re on alert protecting the homefront and the western front. What a great opportunity to do the same for ... Europe.”
Gonzalez also said both the joint air policing and the theater security package deployment will allow 194th EFS Airmen to remain current on their training with their active-duty counterparts while assisting a NATO ally with policing the integrity of its borders.
“It’s important that we are standing side by side with our NATO allies,” he said. “We are committed to the security of Europe and helping Bulgaria and countries who ask for our help.”
The 194th EFS has carried out bilateral flight operations to bolster interoperability among NATO allies and partner nations like the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Estonia, Romania, Bulgaria and Iceland since their deployment began in March 2016.Bulgaria 



air policing 



joint mission 



total force 



Air National Guard 



F-15C Eagle 



NATO 



Operation Atlantic Resolve Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF begin Indo-Pacific trip focused on ACE
                    
                    DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fightInnovation
                F-16s arrive to be modified for autonomous testing
                    
                    AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalistsMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil