UK, U.S. air forces strengthen interoperability at ACE exercise Agile Shield

Published Sept. 6, 2024
By Tech. Sgt. Emili Koonce
48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

ROYAL AIR FORCE MARHAM, England --

Six F-35A Lightning II aircraft and 63 Airmen assigned to the 48th Fighter Wing participated in a combined Agile Combat Employment exercise alongside Royal Air Force counterparts Sept. 2-6.

Agile Shield is the United Kingdom’s largest ACE exercise. ACE training events focus on strengthening participants’ capability to rapidly deploy from their home base and establish, as well as sustain, combat airpower generation.

We’re really proud to host the U.S. forces here at RAF Marham,” said Williamson. “We’re able to prove here that we’re capable of responding to short-notice taskings with fifth-generation technology in an agile manner.”

RAF Wing Commander Williamson, Officer Commanding RAF Marham Operations Wing

The Liberty Wing routinely conducts collaborative training exercises that provide opportunities to strengthen tactics, techniques, and procedures to improve interoperability, and strengthen trust between U.S. and UK forces.

An airman signals a jet to park on the flightline — U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Caleb Leal, 48th Security Forces Squadron training instructor, marshals an F-35A Lightning II assigned to the 48th Fighter Wing at RAF Marham, England, Sept. 4, 2024. Liberty Wing’s expeditionary Airmen are capable of accomplishing tasks outside of their core air force specialties showcasing the ready and multi-capable Airmen mindset. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Alexander Vasquez)

“We’re here to test our ACE capability and it’s important that we know where we stand,” said Capt. Samantha Vernon, 493rd Fighter Squadron F-35 pilot and Agile Shield U.S. operations lead. “ACE enables our forces to swiftly maneuver and remain unpredictable to our enemies.”

Throughout the week-long training exercise, pilots, maintainers, logisticians, and defenders also tested their multi-capable Airmen skills.

“Everyone is expected to do a little of everything,” said Airman Cortlin Patterson, 493rd Fighter Generation Squadron F-35 crew chief. “That could mean avionics troops launching jets or weapons members changing a tire.”

An Airman attaches a fuel hose to an aircraft — U.S. Air Force Airman Cortlin Patterson, 493rd Fighter Generation Squadron crew chief, refuels an F-35A Lightning II with assistance from RAF Marham Airmen during exercise Agile Shield at RAF Marham, England, Sept. 4, 2024. The ability of the 48th Fighter Wing to rapidly maneuver and operate alongside Allies and partners strengthens our shared techniques, tactics and procedures while proving the unit’s capability to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Alexander Vasquez)

Additionally, RAF Airmen were a vital component in meeting operational support needs according to Vernon.

“I’ve received jet fuel from an RAF fuels Airman and they’ve also helped us unload our necessary mission support equipment,” said Patterson. “They really made it easy for us to conduct Agile Shield.”

Integration was evident from support operations on the ground to combined mission execution in the air.

A pilot steps away from their aircraft after landing — U.S. Air Force Capt. Thomas Holmes, 493rd Fighter Squadron pilot, returns after completing a combined aerial training sortie during exercise Agile Shield at RAF Marham, England, Sept. 4, 2024. The Liberty Wing routinely conducts collaborative training exercises that provide opportunities to strengthen tactics, techniques, and procedures to improve interoperability, and strengthen trust between U.S. and UK forces. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Alexander Vasquez)

“It all starts with the brief so sitting down with the RAF pilots to talk about what we’re going to do for the day, then we takeoff and meet in the airspace to execute the mission,” said Capt. Thomas Holmes, 493rd FS F-35 pilot. “One of my favorite parts of Agile Shield has been flying with the RAF Marham F-35 B-models and seeing them operate and picking up a few things we can take back with us.”

As the exercise closes and both the U.S. and UK teams prepare to bring home their lessons learned and improvements for ACE training, Williamson reflected on the successes of this iteration.

“Agile Shield has shown us that we can operate concurrent UK and U.S. aircraft from this base and support them logistically without missing a beat,” said Williamson. “That means we can continue to develop our posture, keep proving to ourselves that we’re ready to respond to whatever threats come our way, and support our enduring NATO commitment.”