Page 38 - Australian Defence Magazine November 2022

38 DEFENCE BUSINESS PITCH BLACK 2022
NOVEMBER 2022 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
REGIONAL PARTNERSHIPS
From a regional perspective, both Japan and South Korea sent aircraft and personnel to Darwin for the first time, after participating as observers in earlier exercises.
The Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) deployed five Mitsubishi F-2A fighter jets and around 100 personnel in a show of solidarity with regional partners and allies.
what is available in South Korea. We can fly more than 60 aircraft simultaneously and it’s a big challenge to us to manage a large process in the air the same time, so we can learn a lot of things here.”
Participating for the second time, the Indian Air Force deployed four Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighters from 20 Squadron
“This exercise is very significant for us tactical skills, to improve interoperability between Australia and Japan, and also enhance our mutual understanding with the air forces of other nations. This exercise will uphold and reinforce the initiative of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” explained Detachment Commander Colonel Tadano.
to improve our
“Lightnings” and ported by a C-17A
around 100 personnel to Darwin, sup- Globemaster III transport.
The officer in charge of media coordination for the IAF in Darwin, Wing Commander Rohan Kulkarni told ADM that the lessons learned from the 2019 exercise were incorporated into planning for the 2022 event.
“We are flying all the laid down missions; both by day and night, as mandated by the exercise settings and applicable to a multi-role aircraft like the
“It will help improve and enhance the
initiative about freedom and the Quad
countries (Australia, India, Japan and
the US) to communicate and cooperate together. It’s very important for the security environment in the Indo Pacific.”
The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) participated in Pitch Black 2022 for the first time, sending six KF-16C/D Fighting Falcons to Darwin and a single KC-330 Cygnus tanker to RAAF Amberley.
“The big advantage of Pitch Black for us is the magni- tude of the airspace,” commented Detachment Education Officer and KF-16 pilot Major Lee during the second week of the exercise. “This is a very large airspace compared to
Su-30MKI,” WGCDR Kolkarni said.
“We are using the capabilities (of the Su-30) as
demanded from the mission settings as applicable for the exercise. We’re here to learn from each other and use the exercise settings for sharing of best practices between participating nations.”
ADM also understands that Pitch Black 2022 is the first major exercise in which all four nations of the Quadri- lateral Security Dialogue (‘Quad’) have participated with combat aircraft.
“THIS EXERCISE WILL UPHOLD AND REINFORCE THE INITIATIVE OF A FREE AND OPEN INDO-PACIFIC”
NIGEL PITTAWAY