Portuguese Air Force in exercise Noble Arrow 2016

RAMSTEIN, Germany- NATO’s exercise Noble Arrow 2016, a multinational exercise involving Allies and partners, enters its second week in the northwest and northeast of the United Kingdom.

Integrated into the UK exercise Joint Warrior, more than 70 military aircraft are demonstrating their combat readiness, further enhancing cooperation and interoperability.

The Portuguese Air Force detachment of F-16 fighter jets are one of many air assets in the exercise. Deployed to Royal Air Force (RAF) Lossiemouth they are practicing large-scale joint flying operations with other air and maritime forces.

"So far Noble Arrow has been a great opportunity to strengthen the relationship with our NATO partners,” says Major Bruno Ribeiro, the Portuguese F-16 detachment commander at RAF Lossiemouth. "In this complex scenario, involving multiple airbases and interaction with naval assets, effective coordination and communication is a special challenge. The exercise offers us an opportunity to further hone our processes to maximize the effectiveness of our operation for future NATO Response Force (NRF) missions.”

Exercise Noble Arrow 2016 wraps up on Thursday, October 20th.

Story by HQ AIRCOM Public Affairs Office