Indian Prime Minister inaugurates the first indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant in Kochi, Kerela. Credit: Government of India/Prime Minister’s Office/Press Information Bureau/commons.wikimedia.org.

Personnel from the UK Royal Air Force (RAF) have participated in the US-led joint personnel recovery exercise Red Flag Rescue.

The three-week-long exercise was conducted at the US Air Force’s (USAF) Davis-Monthan Air Force Base (AFB) in Arizona.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Related Company Profiles

View all

The latest iteration of the Red Flag Rescue exercise allowed British forces to enhance their interoperability.

It provided an opportunity to the RAF to exchange skills with USAF’s Para Rescue teams and rotary assets.

The RAF deployed a total of 18 personnel from its 2 Force Protection Wing and Air Land Integration Cell, along with two survival, evasion, resistance, and escape instructors.

The deployed participants operated as the UK Ground Extraction Force throughout the exercise.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

UK gunners and the USAF’s para-rescue specialists also carried out a wide range of joint personnel recovery drills.

UK exercise lead flight lieutenant Harrison said: “Being involved with a full planning cycle for a US-led Joint Personnel Recovery option was invaluable, not only for ground forces and enhancement of Joint Personnel Recovery skills and drills, but for planning staff and detachment commanders to better understand operational planning and liaison functions that are so key to the [delivery] of Joint Personnel Recovery.”

The participants also conducted training in several extraction techniques and advanced first aid.

Red Flag Rescue allowed the RAF participants to learn high tempo, realistic ground extraction training from the US specialists, as part of an international team.

A UK RAF 34 Squadron officer commanding said: “The Squadron built on pre-deployment training conducted with 28 Squadron Chinooks [Exercise KUKRI DAWN] to develop a niche capability while emphasising the joint nature of personnel recovery.”