Anatolian Eagle 2014-2
Karo-Aviation
visit Konya airbase for Anatolian Eagle 2014-2
Article and pictures by Rolph Klijn and Ronald de Roij
Train the way you
fight, because you will fight the way you have been trained is a lesson
learned from the Vietnam war on. During the Vietnam war it became clear
that training in a real combat situation would result in a better
performance in a real war. Today this is one of the key statements still
applicable for joint exercises as Anatolian Eagle.
But the scenery has
changed ,when you look at the past NATO allies had to fight together
against a well-defined enemy. In today's changing world a different kind
of training environment is necessary as the well-defined enemy is a
thing of the past. Most operations these days are in big coalition
forces consisting of forces from all over the world. For example in the
recent intervention in Libya and also in different peace keeping
missions.
Therefore the norm
is increasingly towards coalition operations in which understanding your
coalition partners, their capabilities and their tactics is all
important. Equally as
important is the forging of personal relationships during exercises
which are so important when coalition forces are called on for
operations.
Anatolian
Eagle
The
exercise Anatolian Eagle was initiated in 2001, to simulate air warfare
scenarios in the context of national and multinational training. The
Anatolian Eagle (AE) Training Centre was built at 3rd Main Jet Base at
Konya, located in Central Anatolia in Turkey.
It sits on the periphery of the vast Konya plain, a
sparsely populated flat basin, an ideal location for a complex air
exercise. The extensive dedicated training area for AE was established
between 1998 and 2001 and the air training area measures 100 miles in
length and 95 miles in width.
Turkey has held three to four AE exercises every year
from 2001 to today, with a mix of participants from both the West
(eight NATO partners have already participated) and the East, including
Jordan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, U.A.E. and perhaps more surprisingly
Israel. Testimony
to the success of Anatolian Eagle are the many framed pictures of units
that participated. Many with a handwritten thank you on it.
Almost forty AE exercises took place since 2001, with thirteen
countries participating, besides the host nation.
By now, AE has grown into one of the largest and most
complex joint air force exercises in the world, paralleled only by Red
Flag, held periodically at Nevada’s Nellis Air Force Base, and the
annual Maple Flag exercise in Canada. Within ten years, the Turkish Air
Force has grown into a level where it is able to perform on par with
most and train air forces of other countries.
The F-4E 2020s which were modernized by Israel Aircraft
Industries (IAI) optimized for the long range precision strike.
Equipped with an extremely powerful Elta EL/M-2032 radar and
Popeye I precision guided missile as well as GBU-10/12
Paveway laser guided bombs, AGM-65 Maverick television
guided missiles. They are still an formidable force to take
in account during the exercise.
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The base scenario
consists of an attack by the BLUE team through a Combined Air Operation
(COMAO) on the tactical and strategic targets in RED-lands which are
being defended by RED force fighter aircraft and SAM systems. During the
exercise, NATO E-3 AWACS and Turkish Air Force Boeing 737 AEW&C Peace
Eagle aircraft gave command and control support to BLUE forces while
land-based radar systems supported the RED forces. From the base
scenario, more complexity is added throughout the two training weeks,
such as tighter operating envelopes, higher threat levels and reduced
preparation time.
During the exercise
the missions are flown in ever more complex formations in one morning
wave and an afternoon wave. Each wave consisting of about 50 aircraft.
During the exercise air refuelling and slow movers are provided by the
Turkish Air Force in the form of KC-135 tankers and C-130 Hercules and
CASA 235 tactical transport.
The mission takes
place in a large piece of segregated airspace so training can take place
without the usual concerns of the congested European airspace. Which
means there is a much saver training environment and al the effort can
by focused on the training. it’s generic scenario is a scenario with ‘Blue’
forces against ‘Red’ forces. The Red forces are the opposition provided
by Turkish Air Force dedicated aggressor squadrons and it normally takes
the form of about fifty fighter aircraft. The fight lasts about thirty
minutes and it’s very intense.
Some of the key aims of
Anatolian Eagle that were outlined during the exercise included:
•To systematically test and evaluate the fighters' combat
readiness statuses and to output tactical training needs and
plan exercises accordingly for efficiency.
•Manage tactical training progress
•Build a background and knowledge base in order to research
tactical aeronautics
•Conduct research to allow fighter elements of the Turkish
Air Force Command to reach the military goals in the
shortest time and with minimum resource and effort
•Support the definition of operational requirements, supply,
and research and development activities
•Allocate training environment in order to fulfil the
requirements of the Turkish Air Force Command
•Support tests of existing/developed/future weapon/aircraft
systems
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This year’s
multination Anatolian Eagle ran from the 9th of June to the 20th
and was attended by |
Nation |
Aircraft |
No |
Units |
Jordan |
F-16AM/BM |
3 |
1st Squadron |
Nato |
E-3A |
1 |
NAEWF |
Qatar |
Mirage 2000-5EDA/DDA |
4 |
7th air superiority squadron |
Spain |
EF-18M/BM |
6 |
ALA 12 |
|
EF-2000 |
6 |
ALA 14 |
Turkey |
F-16C/D |
40+ |
132,141,143,151,152 |
|
various blocks |
|
161,162,182,191,192 Filo |
|
F-4E 2020 |
11 |
111,171 Filo |
|
KC-135R |
1 |
101 Filo |
|
C-160D |
1 |
221 Filo |
|
CN235 |
1 |
211 Filo |
|
Boeing 737 AEW&C |
1 |
131 Filo |
United Kingdom |
Typhoon FGR4 |
6 |
3,11 Squadron |
Bringing different types of aircraft with different roles and of
different ages gives great training value for all involved.
Of course with
Turkey being the host it contributed the largest part with almost 60
aircraft.
First time participation
This year there were two firsts for AE. One was Turkey's
newest airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft called Barış
Kartalı (Eagle of Peace), in its first participation in an international
exercise. Based on the Boeing 737-700 commercial airplane, the Peace
Eagle AEW&C aircraft is equipped with Northrop Grumman-built multi-role
electronically scanned array antenna with integrated identification
friend-or-foe (IFF) capabilities.
Enabling the Turkish air force
simultaneously to track airborne and maritime targets and at the same time
direct the control of fighter aircraft in the area.
An additional two AEW&C
aircraft are scheduled to be handed over to Turkish air force this year,
while delivery of the fourth will take place in 2015.
On
the other hand it was the Qatar's Air force first time in AE,
participating with the Mirage 2000 operated by the 7th Air Superiority
Squadron, which operates 9 single-seat and 3 twin-seat Mirage 2000. At
the moment the Qatar Air force expanded its forces with C-130 and C-17
aircraft and is planning for an acquisition of 72 fighter aircraft.
With
the participating in AE and its recent deployment of aircraft during the
Libya operation, Qatar now is utilizing its oil and gas dollars
to not only greatly enhance its own defences, but also to enable it to
play a much larger part in multinational peacekeeping operations
Qatar has a small fighter force off just 12 Dassault Mirage 2000s, these aircraft rarely leave the country
one of the first times was during the crisis in Libya and
now during Anatolian Eagle 2014.
Its participation in this
exercise allowed photographers to get up
close to these rarely seen aircraft.
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Having this training
facility, it does not stop with the international Anatolian Eagle
exercise. During the year other Anatolian Eagle exercise’s are
held. Some with only Turkish participation and some with just one
foreign participant like the one planned for this autumn in which the
Pakistan Air Force will participated.
Next to the Anatolian Eagle exercise others are held at Konya, like a
CSAR exercise that started at the day Anatolian Eagle 2014-2 ended. As
CSAR is not an "working hours" job the exercise started on Saturday.
Foreign participants were the Spanish Air Force with a CN235 from Ala35
and the USAF with a MC130 from 67SOS. The Turks participated with a
mixed bag of helicopters (the venerable UH1, the UH60 and the Super
Puma/Cougher) from the air force, the army and the Jandarma.
All in all Konya air base and its Anatolian Eagle staff present a very
professional team for big joint air exercises. Giving the international
fighter pilot community an challenging environment for expert training
in a fast chancing world.
Karo-Aviation would like to thank the Turkish Air
Force staff for our permission to attend
Anatolian Eagle 2014-2. And to all the staff present at Konya Air Base
for their warm welcome and hospitality. |