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        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      F-16 flies over waterAn F-16 Fighting Falcon assigned to the 79th Fighter Squadron, Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., flies over the Gulf of Mexico, Nov. 8, 2021. Personnel and aircraft from the 79th FS traveled to Florida to participate in exercise Checkered Flag 22-1, a large-force aerial exercise held at Tyndall AFB, Fla., that fosters readiness and interoperability through the incorporation of fourth and fifth-generation aircraft during air-to-air combat training. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Betty R. Chevalier)
                
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        pilot sits in jetA pilot assigned to the 90th Fighter Squadron, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, performs post-flight checks after landing at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., Nov. 1, 2021, for exercise Checkered Flag 22-1. Checkered Flag is a large-force aerial exercise that fosters readiness and interoperability through the incorporation of fourth and fifth-generation aircraft during air-to-air combat training. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Tiffany Price)
                
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Checkered Flag 22-1 comes to a close at Tyndall AFBPublished Nov. 23, 2021
                    
                    By Staff Sgt. Magen M. Reeves
                    
                    
                    325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
            **TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. (AFNS) --**Airmen, Sailors and Department of Defense contractors and civilians participated in exercise Checkered Flag 22-1 at**Tyndall Air Force Base**, Nov. 8-19.
Checkered Flag, hosted by the 325th Fighter Wing, is one of the DoD’s largest air-to-air exercises. It serves to integrate fourth and fifth-generation aircraft to train and test enhanced mobility, pre-deployment qualifications, and rapid response employment capabilities of pilots and aircrew.
“This iteration of Checkered Flag is different because the 325th Fighter Wing actually owns the exercise,” said Lt. Col. Sean Fazande, Checkered Flag 22-1 exercise director. “We actually have every agency on base involved to execute this mission; that’s upwards of 15 agencies coming together, coordinating and making the exercise happen.”
The wing was responsible for maintaining and executing predetermined mission goals and learning objectives identified by the **Air Combat Command** commander’s intent to train a dedicated, highly-effective force ready worldwide for rapid response. This is known as an Immediate Response Force defense posture.
“We hone down exactly what we are going to execute,” Fazande said. “We also have players from Jacksonville and Eglin (AFB) and other locations that [participated], giving us a very robust exercise.”
Integration operations focused on building relationships and strengthening partnerships with the U.S. Navy, as well as **North American Aerospace Defense Command** partners stationed at **Tinker AFB**, Oklahoma.
Additional units that participated included the 90th Fighter Squadron assigned to **Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson**, Alaska and the 79th FS stationed at **Shaw AFB**, South Carolina.
More than 93 aircraft and 12 squadrons from across the country brought their respective fighters, tankers, electronic and communication warfare skills, and command and control aircraft teams to the playing field.
“[We] allow our pilots to get out there and work together and build unit cohesion,” Fazande said. “That unit cohesion is very key to what Checkered Flag is all about; bringing them down here, working together, mission planning together, getting out into the airspace and knowing how and when [to] execute certain tactics.”KC-10 parked on airfield rampA KC-10 Extender is parked on a ramp at Cecil Airport, Jacksonville, Fla., Nov. 8, 2021. The KC-10 traveled to Florida to participate in exercise Checkered Flag 22-1, a large-force aerial exercise held at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., which fosters readiness and interoperability through the incorporation of fourth and fifth-generation aircraft during air-to-air combat training. The 22-1 iteration of the exercise was held Nov. 8-19, 2021. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Betty R. Chevalier)
            
            
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    man inspecting planeAirman 1st Class Justin Mahan, an F-22 Raptor crew chief assigned to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, performs a post-flight aircraft inspection after assets assigned to the 90th Fighter Squadron arrived at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., Nov. 1, 2021, for exercise Checkered Flag 22-1. Checkered Flag is a large-force aerial exercise that fosters readiness and interoperability through the incorporation of fourth and fifth-generation aircraft during air-to-air combat training. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Tiffany Price)
            
            
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    F-15E performs air-to-air refuelingThe crew of an F-15E Strike Eagle receives fuel from a KC-10 Extender during an air-to-air refueling over the Gulf of Mexico, Nov. 8, 2021. Air-to-air refueling provides extended range and flight time to aircraft, allowing crews to complete longer missions without landing. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Betty R. Chevalier)
            
            
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During the course of Checkered Flag 22-1, the 53rd Wing’s Weapons System Evaluation Program East 22.02, also known as Combat Archer, took place as well. The Air Force’s WSEP program is also a joint service program that tests air-to-air and air-to-ground live fire weapons and munitions systems. Conducting the exercise and the WSEP simultaneously saves the DoD resources and provides additional training opportunities made available by proximity and collaboration.
“We get to do this in concert with them because we utilize the same jets,” Fazande said. “You get the entire gamut of getting into the airspace in the morning, executing certain fighter tactics; how to employ the jet and then take [that back] to debrief and decide how we could improve on those skills.
In the afternoon [pilots] get to go from the fighter intercept point to the target, releasing weapons and [learning] what it feels like to shoot a missile off the wing and employ the tactics appropriately,” he continued.
Exercises like Checkered Flag help to paint a more detailed picture for higher levels of command of real world capabilities. Interoperability is key in developing and maintaining a more lethal air dominant force in the global theater.
Along with Tyndall AFB Airmen, approximately 950 transient personnel made the exercise successful with eight flying missions and 449 sorties flown. The success of the combined training exemplifies Tyndall AFB’s main mission: to train and project unrivaled combat airpower.LR 



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