ANG fighter wing preps for alert missions at Tyndall

F-16.new ^ | 2/1/2011 | Angela Pope

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

Shooting down enemy aircraft over American soil is an event U.S.-based alert pilots train for.

They run exercise scenarios on a constant basis, preparing for that call to scramble. But all the dry runs in the world can't prepare a pilot for that moment when a live missile is released from the jet.

That's why the 148th Fighter Wing out of Duluth, Minn., is spending two weeks here working with the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group.

"We came here to shoot missiles and drop live ordnance to be better prepared for our Air Sovereignty Alert mission," said Lt. Col. Reed Bowman, 148th FW block 50 conversion officer. "We also came to the WEG to validate our new weapons system."

The 148th FW, which supports the Continental U.S. NORAD Region in carrying out Operation Noble Eagle - the command's response to the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 - is currently in the process of replacing its block 25 F-16s with better equipped Block 50 F-16s that have different engines and internal avionics. The upgraded airframe will enhance the wing's ability to support ASA missions.

[USNBandit]

So they went to the WEG to train for the ASA mission in case NORAD tasks them under ONE. Sounds pretty much SOP.

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

I agree

[VOA]

“
Shooting down enemy aircraft over American soil is an event U.S.-based
alert pilots train for.
“

As a never-served civilian, I think the real training exercise is
to plan to shot down a hijacked civilian/domestic airliner before it is
rammed into a high-rise in NYC, Chicago, or a strategic building
like the Pentagon or CIA headquarters.

That would be the bitter pill to swallow.

[jch10]

Well, welcome to all crewmembers! I hope they gave you the key to our city!

[ExNewsExSpook]

I hope the “live ordnance drops” are just part of a routine Eglin/WSEP deployment, or part of normal qualification training for F-16 drivers. I understand the air defense stuff in support of homeland security. But if the Air Guard is doing practice bombing for domestic defense, we are in serious trouble.

[JRios1968]

I hope the “live ordnance drops” are just part of a routine Eglin/WSEP deployment...

There are 3 different WSEP locations. The air-to-air WSEP is at Tyndall, where they get to shoot at drones. There's an air-to-ground WSEP at Eglin and one at Hill AFB in Utah, where they get to shoot missiles and drop bombs against different types of target sets.

There's an additional ground-to-air WSEP for the Army, conducted at White Sands, with unmanned QF-4 drones from Holloman AFB.

All are conducted by the 53rd Weapons Eval Group, based at Tyndall.