AIRCOM’s command post exercise
(CPX) Ramstein Ambition I-16 (RAAN I-16) finished at Poggio Renatico, Italy, on
29 June 2016 and all participating staff returned to their respective home
garrisons at Ramstein, Germany, Torrejon, Spain and Uedem, Germany. The CPX was
hosted by Italy inside the facilities of the Italian Air Operations Command,
which provided the right environment for this important training event.
"RAAN I-16 was very effective
and allowed us to maintain our high qualification standards and pass important
knowledge to our newly arrived staff members,” said Brigadier General Kevin
Huyck, US Air Force, Deputy Chief of Staff Operations at HQ AIRCOM and RAAN
I-16 JFAC Director. "During the nine days of training with over 400
personnel from numerous NATO and PfP nations, we were able to successfully
practice the planning, integration, and synchronization of complex air command
and control procedures. This outstanding exercise ensured Allied Air
Command is trained and ready to execute collective defence in a dynamic
security environment.”
RAAN I-16 was aimed at training
air component assets in setting up and executing a Joint Force Air Component or
JFAC Headquarters that is used during a NATO operation to command and control
Allied air forces across the whole spectrum of missions.
The Ramstein Ambition series is
conducted as a CPX twice a year; the first iteration is designed to serve as a
major step in the collective training of JFAC-dedicated personnel. The second
iteration will build on the first one and further hone specific JFAC skills
usually supported by a more complex and demanding scenario.
HQ AIRCOM is responsible for
standing up the NATO Command Structure JFAC for any NATO operation within
SACEUR's area of responsibility or exceeding NATO Force Structure capabilities.
It can be supplemented from all AIRCOM entities and/or augmented from NATO
nations.