Air Forces From 12 Nations Participated In The Training
Scenario
The air forces of 12 countries of the Americas participated in
an exercise aimed at using multinational air assets from SICOFAA
member nations (Sistema de cooperacion de las Fuerzas Aerias de las
Americas) in support of humanitarian civic assistance missions,
Oct. 4 to 14 in Chile.
Air Force Cooperaction Team
The Cooperation 1 exercise scenario was premised on the effects
of the 8.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Chile in February,
triggering a tsunami, widespread blackouts and the loss of property
and hundreds of lives.
"The events in Haiti and Chile this year and other disasters in
years past have shown us that none of our countries are immune to
natural disaster," said Col. Kris Skinner the secretary general of
SICOFAA. "In the aftermath of one of these events, when lives are
at stake and time is critical, the efficient use of air assets is
crucial to providing timely humanitarian support and saving
lives,"
During 2011, SICOFAA leaders will use lessons learned from
Cooperation 1 and recent actual disaster responses to create and
publish a manual outlining procedures for the use of member-nation
air forces. The manual will outline the necessary procedures to
stand up a multinational command and control center capable of
managing air assets for humanitarian relief, Colonel Skinner said.
The command-and-control concept has not yet been used in Latin
America for humanitarian missions.
SICOFAA has proposed a 10-year plan for using the manual in
future exercises. Colonel Skinner will present the plan to SICOFAA
air force commanders at the next annual conference in Brazil. The
next SICOFAA exercise, Cooperacion 2 will be held as soon as
possible. The location has not been determined. The System of
Cooperation Among the Americas, or SICOFAA, has an American office
headquartered at Andrews Air Force Base, MD.
"This type of exercise is important for all of our nations
because the next natural disaster will give us another opportunity
to come together to help one another, and that is what we want to
be able to do," said Lt. Gen. Glenn F. Spears, the commander of
12th Air Force.
U.S. Air Force officials contributed two C-130 Hercules from
Texas Air National Guard's 136th Airlift Wing and 27 personnel from
various units to both fly cargo and participate in the
command-and-control aspects of coordinating aerial missions. Six of
the 12 participating countries brought cargo aircraft and flew over
232 missions, transported 2,607 kilograms of cargo and 306
passengers to 14 locations. U.S. airmen flew near daily missions
with approximately 100 flight hours and transported approximately
24,000 pounds of cargo between the cities of Santiago, Puerto Montt
and Balmaceda -- one of Chile's southernmost cities.
"The exercise has been an absolute success," said Aviation
General (two-star general) Luis Ili Delgado, director of Exercise
Cooperacion 1. "We have been able to learn a great amount about
each other's air forces, cultures, capabilities and procedures. We
are learning about the coordinated movement of cargo and passengers
for disaster response through an exercise, instead of when lives
are on the line."
Airbus Racer Helicopter Demonstrator First Flight Part of Clean Sky 2 Initiative
See All