View Gallery

Gallery contains 1 image

×

Photo 1 of 1

Airmen deploy to support Estonia FTD

A Maryland Air National Guard A-10 Thunderbolt II peels off shortly after being refueled by Master Sgt. Joseph LaPinta, 171st Air Refueling Squadron boom operator, in a Michigan Air National Guard KC-135 Stratotanker during Saber Strike 2015. Exercise Saber Strike 2015 has brought 14 ally and partner nations together to increase interoperability between military forces. The Michigan National Guard is a part of a Department of Defense sponsored State Partnership Program between Michigan and the Latvian government, which began in 1993. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Capt. Anthony J. Lesterson)

Download image

Copy text

Photo by: Capt. Anthony Lesterson 

Ten A-10 Thunderbolt IIs, a MC-130J Commando II, and approximately 270 Airmen and associated equipment from bases across the U.S. and Europe will deploy to Amari Air Base, Estonia, Aug. 4-20.

The deployment is funded by the European Reassurance Initiative as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, which ensures U.S. European Command has a ready persistent rotational presence of American air, land and sea forces in the region.

The A-10s from the 175th Wing, Warfield Air National Guard Base, Md., will train with multinational Joint Terminal Attack Controllers and Combat Control Teams at Amari and Jagala, Estonia.

The MC-130J is from the 352nd Special Operations Wing, RAF Mildenhall, U. K. and a combat communications team will deploy from the 435th Air Ground Operations Wing, Ramstein Air Base, Germany.

While deployed, the A-10s will also train with the Finnish Air Force F/A-18 Hornets in Finland, Spanish Air Force F/A-18 Hornets in Estonia and multinational JTACs in Latvia. Flight operations will take place in Finnish, Estonian, Latvian and international airspace.

This training will focus on maintaining joint readiness while building interoperability capabilities.

For more information, contact +49 (0) 6371-47-6558 or via e-mail at usafepao.pao@us.af.mil. If after duty hours, please call +49 (0) 1624-25-5428 or send an e-mail to usafepa.pastaffdutyofficer@us.af.mil.