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USAF exercise eyes
China as adversary
CHIMICHANGA: A nation-wide bombing exercise
involving aircraft based in Japan highlighted the US Air Forceˇ¦s ability to
operate in a large anti-access target area
By J. Michael Cole / Staff Reporter
A long-range strike exercise held by the US Strategic Command earlier this month
may have been intended as a practice run for a future contingency involving
China, military analysts have said.
The exercise, codenamed Operation Chimichanga, was held at the US militaryˇ¦s
Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex near Eilson Air Force Base, Alaska, and
involved a variety of combat aircraft and bombers, including F-22 Raptor stealth
fighters, B-1 bombers, E-3 Sentry airborne warning and control system (AWACS)
and KC-135 Stratotankers air-refueling aircraft.
US Air Force F-16s from Misawa Air Base in northern Japan also took part in the
exercise.
Other than a short press release detailing the type of aircraft and weapons used
during the exercise, the US Air Force has remained relatively low-key on the
matter and did not refer to any specific contingency or scenario.
Major Scott Lanis, 168th Operations Group chief of scheduling, said the more
than 168,000km2 of airspace at the complex provided a diverse training
environment that allowed pilots to train realistically and jointly in situations
similar to those they would face in combat.
The exercise allowed different aircraft to work together in a simulated strike
environment, to practice interoperability while simultaneously traveling long
distances and receiving air-refueling support, a notice on the exercise said.
This was also the first time that increment 3.1, a recent F-22 hardware and
software upgrade that provides the F-22 with the means to find and engage ground
targets, was used in a large force employment exercise.
The exercise on April 4 involved launches of a combination of real and
computer-simulated weapons at mock targets scattered across the Joint Pacific
Alaska Range.
Although the nation-wide joint exercise was officially aimed at validating the
long-range capabilities of the B-1s and the ability of F-22s and F-16s to escort
them into an anti-access target area, military analysts have speculated that it
was also aimed at validating evolving US Air Force tactics and concepts for
military operations against either China in the Pacific theater of operations,
or possibly North Korea.
One of the main focuses of Chinese military modernization in recent years has
been anti-access/area-denial capabilities to delay or prevent US forces from
intervening in an armed conflict over Taiwan.
In addition to the Dong Feng-21D anti-ship missile currently under development,
China has erected an impressive network of surface-to-air missiles to counter
enemy aircraft, mostly through acquisitions from Russia.
Meanwhile, the joint Maritime Cooperation Sino-Russian naval exercises in the
Yellow Sea entered their second day yesterday. In all, 25 naval vessels, 13
aircraft, nine helicopters and two special -fighting groups are taking part in
the exercise, the largest in years. The Peopleˇ¦s Liberation Army Navy has
deployed missile destroyers, missile frigates, missile boats, a support vessel
and a hospital ship for the exercises, which are scheduled to finish on Friday.
Chinese submarines will reportedly act as an opposing force attacking the joint
fleet as part of anti-submarine warfare exercises.
While the Russian Navyˇ¦s cruiser Varyag is participating in the exercise off
Shandong Province, Chinaˇ¦s own refurbished Varyag aircraft carrier embarked on
its fifth sea trial on Friday, though it is not expected to participate in the
joint exercises with Russia.
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