Page 1 - Desert Lightning News, Nellis-Creech AFB Edition, March 29, 2019
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vol. 3, no. 7  Serving Southern Nevada’s military community, including Nellis, Creech and NTTR march 29, 2019

                        An Aerotech news And review publicAtion • www.Aerotechnews.com

Pilot experiences Red Flag for first time

by Airman 1st Class Bryan Guthrie                        Air Force photograph by Airman 1st Class Bryan Guthrie                                                                                            Air Force photograph by Airman 1st Class Bryan Guthrie

Nellis AFB, Nev.                                  Capt. Kyle Benham, 62nd Fighter Squadron                       Capt. Kyle Benham, 62nd Fighter Squadron F-35A Lightning II fighter jet pilot, taxis down
                                                  F-35A Lightning II fighter jet pilot, stands                   the ramp for take-off during Red Flag 19-2 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., March 20, 2019.
   Capt. Kyle Benham, 62nd Fighter                in front of an F-35A at Nellis Air Force Base,                 Benham previously had 72 hours in the F-35A before Red Flag but accumulated much
Squadron F-35A Lightning II fighter jet           Nev., March 18, 2019. Benham participated                      more experience after flying five times during the exercise.
pilot, participated in his first Red Flag         in his first Red Flag at Nellis to improve
March 8-22 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.         combat readiness as a pilot with a multitude
                                                  of different partners.
   Benham took part in Red Flag 19-2
to increase his experience with coalition         over the years, but some legacies have never
forces from across the globe and improve          changed.
on his skills in an F-35A in a mass exercise
that pushes even the best fighter pilots to          “I feel blessed to have the opportunity,
their limits, especially for those at Red Flag    especially because my grandfather was a
for the first time.                               fighter pilot and the legacy he carried,” said
                                                  Benham. “Being able to see everything he
   “The goal for me in this exercise is to        experienced in his time compared to now.
think beyond just my aircraft and get into        It means a lot to me that the Air Force
the big picture of how I can help 60 plus         would take the time and money to put an
aircraft in the mission,” said Benham.            exercise together, such as Red Flag, so we
                                                  can have the experience we need to prepare
    Benham discussed further how Red              us for real life conflicts.”
Flag itself could be a monster.
                                                     Red Flag is conducted three times at
   “Nellis is the location everyone talks         Nellis AFB and enhances combat readiness
about,” said Benham. “There’s a lot of his-       of air forces around the world. The next Red
tory and tactics that come out of here. As        Flag is scheduled for summer 2019.
far as Red Flag itself, it’s one of the premiere
exercises that a pilot can participate in. If
there is any intimidating part of Red Flag,
it’s that you’re going to jam 60 to 70 aircraft
in a confined space. Thus, forcing everyone
to work as a team to solve whatever tactical
problem presented.”

   Ten other nations will make up all the
aircraft in the sky for Rad Flag 19-2.

   “The hardest factor will be that coalition
partners bring something different such
as tactics or the way they communicate
them. Making sure that we are all on the
same page so we can execute the mission
in a real-life scenario.”

   As Benham progressed through Red
Flag, he noticed minor improvements as
the U.S. and its partners worked together.

   “One of the areas I noticed an improve-
ment in is the integration with other
aircraft and platforms while airborne,”
said Benham. “It is awesome to see the
improvement in communication from day
one to now, going into the second week,
going from some miscommunication to
being able to pass and receive information
between aircraft for dynamic targeting in
a short amount of time.”

   Without a doubt, Red Flag has changed

INSIDE: Commentary — 2; News - 3-6; Red Flag — 8-9; Lighter Side — 10-12
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