Marine Pilots Stay Sharp for Next War
David Axe | October 24, 2006
Beaufort, S.C. -- While low-intensity conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan grab most of the media attention and divert the bulk of the U.S. military's resources, Marine Corps fighter pilots are quietly preparing for the next war -- one that might put them up against a high-tech foe with a more sophisticated air force than America has fought in decades. To that end, the fighter jocks of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 312 "Checkerboards", based at a massive base here on the sunny South Carolina coast, are honing their air-to-air combat skills, learning to maneuver their Boeing F/A-18 Hornets to shoot down enemy aircraft. Those are "perishable" skills that haven't been in high demand in recent years -- and they require constant practice.
"Is there an air-to-air threat in Iraq? No. but if we start training just to fight right now, when that fight's over, something else pops up and we're unprepared," says Major Bruce "Flesh" Gordon, a 34-year-old Checkerboards pilot with more than 1,600 hours in the Hornet. He says the Marine Corps' small community of 14 Hornet squadrons -- each flying a dozen jets and half of which are based in Beaufort -- needs to be ready to deploy on 48 hours' notice to cover Marines storming some foreign shore to meet an unexpected threat.
"If a [Marine] commander wants to make a landing in, say, Bashir, Iran, he needs a secure beachhead. He won't have that if the Iranians are launching [Sukhoi Su-25] Frogfoot [attack planes] and [F-4] Phantom [fighters]," 34-year-old Captain Hank Thomas says by way of a hypothetical example.
Thomas, with the unfortunate callsign "Crash", has around 1,000 hours in the Hornet and is the Checkerboard training officer. To make sure he's got the expertise to teach younger pilots, in January Crash is slated to attend Topgun, the Navy's legendary fighter training school in Fallon, Nevada.
In the meantime, in Beaufort, the Checkerboards will tangle with a squadron of expert Marine pilots whose job it is to think and fly like the enemy. Marine Fighter Training Squadron 401 flies Northrop Grumman F-5 Tiger fighters that are nimbler and smaller than other U.S. fighters, making them a good match for the Mikoyan MiG-21 Fishbeds flown by many potential adversaries.
During 401's visit, the Checkerboards will first pit single Hornets against single Tigers ... then graduate to bigger tangles involving as many as two Hornets and four Tigers. The dogfights, usually performed in an instrumented range over the Atlantic Ocean, are recorded and analyzed for the benefit of the trainees. And every simulated missile shot, whether a hit or a miss, is represented on a board in 312's ready room. Right now Crash has the best record, with dozens of successful shots. Flesh isn't far behind.
But there's more to defeating enemy air forces than fancy flying. Ground crews play a critical role. They're the ones who load the AIM-7 Sparrow and AIM-120 Amraam missiles, both built by Raytheon, that the pilots use to down enemy jets. During a recent live-fire exercise, crews loaded Sparrow missiles that Checkerboards pilots fired over the Atlantic. These rare live missile shoots are a major "confidence builder," Flesh reports.
In order to keep pace with foreign air forces, many of which are re-equipping with sophisticated Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker fighters that are roughly equivalent to Boeing's legendary F-15 Eagle, the Checkerboards are gaining a slew of new technologies. These include the new Raytheon AIM-9X Sidewinder dogfighting missile, the Link-16 datalink and, within a couple years, advanced helmet-mounted sights that let a pilot point all his sensors just by looking at a target. The new Sidewinder, in particular, is "a phenomenal weapon," according to 34-year-old Major Glenn "Tako" Takabayashi, a Topgun graduate with 1,300 hours on the Hornet.
The upgrades and others will keep 312's 20-year-old Hornets on the cutting edge until the entire Marine Corps fighter fleet adopts the Joint Strike Fighter. While some critics have questioned the JSF's suitability as a dogfighter, Checkerboards commander Lieutenant Colonel William Maxwell, 43, says every indication is that the aircraft will prove an excellent successor to the agile Hornets, helping the Marines stay ahead of potential enemies.
"The current battle might not be tomorrow's battle," he stresses, echoing Flesh and defending his squadron's emphasis on air-to-air skills seldom practiced over Iraq or Afghanistan.
http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,117648,00.html
David Axe | October 24, 2006
Beaufort, S.C. -- While low-intensity conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan grab most of the media attention and divert the bulk of the U.S. military's resources, Marine Corps fighter pilots are quietly preparing for the next war -- one that might put them up against a high-tech foe with a more sophisticated air force than America has fought in decades. To that end, the fighter jocks of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 312 "Checkerboards", based at a massive base here on the sunny South Carolina coast, are honing their air-to-air combat skills, learning to maneuver their Boeing F/A-18 Hornets to shoot down enemy aircraft. Those are "perishable" skills that haven't been in high demand in recent years -- and they require constant practice.
"Is there an air-to-air threat in Iraq? No. but if we start training just to fight right now, when that fight's over, something else pops up and we're unprepared," says Major Bruce "Flesh" Gordon, a 34-year-old Checkerboards pilot with more than 1,600 hours in the Hornet. He says the Marine Corps' small community of 14 Hornet squadrons -- each flying a dozen jets and half of which are based in Beaufort -- needs to be ready to deploy on 48 hours' notice to cover Marines storming some foreign shore to meet an unexpected threat.
"If a [Marine] commander wants to make a landing in, say, Bashir, Iran, he needs a secure beachhead. He won't have that if the Iranians are launching [Sukhoi Su-25] Frogfoot [attack planes] and [F-4] Phantom [fighters]," 34-year-old Captain Hank Thomas says by way of a hypothetical example.
Thomas, with the unfortunate callsign "Crash", has around 1,000 hours in the Hornet and is the Checkerboard training officer. To make sure he's got the expertise to teach younger pilots, in January Crash is slated to attend Topgun, the Navy's legendary fighter training school in Fallon, Nevada.
In the meantime, in Beaufort, the Checkerboards will tangle with a squadron of expert Marine pilots whose job it is to think and fly like the enemy. Marine Fighter Training Squadron 401 flies Northrop Grumman F-5 Tiger fighters that are nimbler and smaller than other U.S. fighters, making them a good match for the Mikoyan MiG-21 Fishbeds flown by many potential adversaries.
During 401's visit, the Checkerboards will first pit single Hornets against single Tigers ... then graduate to bigger tangles involving as many as two Hornets and four Tigers. The dogfights, usually performed in an instrumented range over the Atlantic Ocean, are recorded and analyzed for the benefit of the trainees. And every simulated missile shot, whether a hit or a miss, is represented on a board in 312's ready room. Right now Crash has the best record, with dozens of successful shots. Flesh isn't far behind.
But there's more to defeating enemy air forces than fancy flying. Ground crews play a critical role. They're the ones who load the AIM-7 Sparrow and AIM-120 Amraam missiles, both built by Raytheon, that the pilots use to down enemy jets. During a recent live-fire exercise, crews loaded Sparrow missiles that Checkerboards pilots fired over the Atlantic. These rare live missile shoots are a major "confidence builder," Flesh reports.
In order to keep pace with foreign air forces, many of which are re-equipping with sophisticated Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker fighters that are roughly equivalent to Boeing's legendary F-15 Eagle, the Checkerboards are gaining a slew of new technologies. These include the new Raytheon AIM-9X Sidewinder dogfighting missile, the Link-16 datalink and, within a couple years, advanced helmet-mounted sights that let a pilot point all his sensors just by looking at a target. The new Sidewinder, in particular, is "a phenomenal weapon," according to 34-year-old Major Glenn "Tako" Takabayashi, a Topgun graduate with 1,300 hours on the Hornet.
The upgrades and others will keep 312's 20-year-old Hornets on the cutting edge until the entire Marine Corps fighter fleet adopts the Joint Strike Fighter. While some critics have questioned the JSF's suitability as a dogfighter, Checkerboards commander Lieutenant Colonel William Maxwell, 43, says every indication is that the aircraft will prove an excellent successor to the agile Hornets, helping the Marines stay ahead of potential enemies.
"The current battle might not be tomorrow's battle," he stresses, echoing Flesh and defending his squadron's emphasis on air-to-air skills seldom practiced over Iraq or Afghanistan.
http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,117648,00.html
