Juvats, Pantons take-on Max Thunder

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Claudette Hutchinson
  • 8th Fighter Wing
KUNSAN AIR FORCE BASE, Republic of Korea --  KUNSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea--Members from the Wolf Pack and Republic of Korea Air Force are participating in the fourth annual Max Thunder exercise, hosted by Kwangju Air Base, Oct. 15 to 22.

Max Thunder is a bilateral training exercise intended to increase interoperability between Republic of Korea and United States military forces. The exercise replicates the scenarios and planning cycles of RED FLAG Nellis, and will provide invaluable large-force employment training for U.S. and ROK military personnel.

During the week-long exercise U.S. Air Force F-16s will fly with ROKAF KF-16s, F-15Ks, and F-4Es. Kwangju AB will accept follow-on forces from the 35th and 80th Fighter Squadrons, Kunsan AB; the 36th FS, Osan AB and the 18 AGRS (Aggressors) from Eielson AB, Alaska; the 11th Fighter Wing from Daegu, the 17th and 19th Fighter Wings from Jeonju; and, 20th FW from Seosan.

"In all, nearly 50 combat aircrafts will participate in the exercise," said Lt. Col. James Wilkerson, 80th Fighter Squadron commander "I'm looking forward to an outstanding exercise; this is the first time we've deployed such a large aviation package from Kunsan to Kwangju and I see this as an incredible opportunity to work alongside our US and ROKAF neighbors."

According to Colonel Wilkerson, this exercise will also test Kwangju's ability to fulfill the second tenet of the Wolf Pack's mission, "to accept follow-on forces."
"The movement of follow-on forces will include bases other than Kunsan, and it is extremely likely that U.S. units will deploy and operate from these bases," said Colonel Wilkerson. "This exercise is our opportunity to test and stress the various support systems that facilitate that effort, as each system involves a myriad of processes. As such, we'll not only test the base infrastructure at Kwangju, but we'll also test our ability to deploy to and operate from a bare-base location, as well as the ability of 7th Air Force to support our efforts."

Training side-by-side will be part of day-to-day operations for ROKAF and USAF forces during this week-long exercise.