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Canadians train with Eglin fighters

Released: Feb. 27, 2003

By Capt. David Small
33rd Fighter Wing Public Affairs

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla., (ACCNS) -- The 33rd Fighter Wing recently hosted members of the Canadian Air Force for dissimilar air combat training here.

Ten CF-18 Hornets from the 433rd Tactical Fighter Squadron from Bagotville, Quebec, Canada, flew training missions with the wing's F-15s over Eglin AFB's ranges.

Dissimilar training with the Canadians gives fighter units insight into how best to employ their weapon systems in a coalition and large-force environment.

"I make the analogy to a high school football game," said Marine Maj. Dan Goodwin, a fighter pilot assigned to the 58th Fighter Squadron. "It's a chance to scrimmage against a really good team, but a team who shows up in different jerseys with a different playbook."

Major Goodwin has flown more than 1,300 hours in the F/A-18 for the Marines. He has 400 hours flying the F-15 through an Air Force/Marine Corps exchange program here.

Traditional training missions consist of four F-15s dog fighting against four F-15s from the same squadron. This doesn't allow as many aircraft in the air as the large-force exercise capability the Canadians bring with them, pitting eight CF-18s against eight F-15s in a more realistic combat environment, Major Goodwin said.

"We get to see the capabilities of a different type of adversary," said Capt. Matt Simmons, another 58th FS pilot. "It's not the same set up we see every day."

Major Goodwin said the exercise builds a cohesive team between the two countries' armed forces.

Of the four Hornet squadrons at Bagotville, the 433rd TFS is currently the vanguard unit who would be tasked to deploy from its base if called, said Chief Warrant Officer Yves Gagne, the senior enlisted member of the squadron.

With winter temperatures lasting through May in Quebec and a current wind chill index of 40F below zero, the maintainers Chief Warrant Officer Gagne oversees consider Eglin a very good deployment, he said. Although they don't have to wear the cold weather gear limiting their dexterity with their tools, it's business as usual.

The main benefit for the enlisted troops deployed here is ensuring their deployment processing is sound, Chief Warrant Officer Gagne said.

Two weapons directors from the Bagotville's 12th Radar Squadron are also operating side-by-side with 728th Air Control Squadron members here, controlling the skies for these DACT missions.

One squadron from either Bagotville, or the Canadian Air Force's other CF-18 base in Cold Lake, Alberta, traditionally deploys annually to Eglin .

Canadian and U.S. maritime, land and air forces conduct numerous military training exercises together each year. They cooperate on defense research and development, and are partners in both the North American Aerospace Defense Agreement and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.