Reserve wing trains for combat scenarios in Canada's Maple Flag exercise

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Miles Wilson
  • 302nd Airlift Wing
EDMONTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Alberta --  More than 175 Airmen from four Air Force Reserve C-130 wings and airlift control flight units joined coalition forces for Maple Flag Exercise at Canadian Forces Base Cold Lake, Alberta, Canada, May 24.
 
Maple Flag is an international exercise designed to enhance the interoperability of C-130 aircrews, maintainers and support specialists in a simulated combat environment. This exercise offers participants access to the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range, which consists of 4,478 square miles of land, and is the only tactical bombing range in Canada.

"This is a U.S. and Canadian training exercise creating a world-class military opportunity to work with our coalition partners," said Col. James DeVere, 94th Operations Group commander and mission commander for the Air Force Reserve's participation in this year's exercise. "Maple Flag has a long and proud history of providing aircrews with realistic training and a chance to practice combat tactics in an international training environment."

Eight C-130 aircraft and service members from Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Georgia, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, New York, Minneapolis ARS, Minnesota, and Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, along with airlift control flight Airmen from Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, and March Air Reserve Base, California, will participate in the exercise that ends June 7.
Two C-130s assigned to the Air Force Reserve Command's 302nd Airlift Wing, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado and 35 aircrew and support personnel from the 302nd AW are participants in this training exercise.