Agile, resilient, lethal: 100th ARW trains ACE during exercise High Life

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Joseph Barron
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

U.S. Airmen assigned to the 100th Air Refueling Wing conducted an agile combat employment exercise at Royal Air Force Fairford, Sept. 13-16.

Dispersing from their home station of RAF Mildenhall, Airmen delivered air refueling capability from a location lacking the installation support of an established Air Force base. Aircrew and personnel from the maintenance, intelligence, weather and security forces career fields worked together to generate more than 10 air refueling missions over three days, supporting U.S. Air Force F-15, E-3, MC-130J, RC-135 and RAF Typhoon aircraft. 

"Practicing agile combat employment is important for the 100th Air Refueling Wing because it allows us to sharpen our capabilities," said U.S. Air Force Maj. Robert Strain, 100th Operations Support Squadron chief of wing current operations. "Agile combat employment ensures our forces are ready to protect and defend our allies and partners by being able to generate combat air power from any location at a moment’s notice, should deterrence efforts fail."

Lessons learned during exercise High Life will enable units from across the wing to refine their strategies for providing air refueling in austere environments. The wing will use these improved operating procedures to become more agile, resilient and lethal in the face of adversary initiative. 

"This exercise showed us how to be more resilient and less reliant on traditional means of communication," said Strain. "Overall, this has made us more capable of doing what we do best: provide vital aerial refueling to U.S. and allied aircraft anytime, anywhere."