The DACCC team regularly supports Composite Air Operations or COMAOs of Allied aircraft to exercise their specialists in providing surveillance, control of air assets and battle management. COMAO 20-10 involved Italian Air Force and U.S. Air Force aircraft and this bi-national character added to the complexity of tasks. 

It is important for our air controllers to apply their skills in this event

         

“It is important for our air controllers to apply their skills in this event," said Major General Claudio Gabellini, DACCC Commander. "Operating out of our peacetime location we are testing connectivity with the Italian Air Control Centre, Recognised Air Picture Production Centre, and Sensor Fusion Post and the Control and Reporting Centre on the one hand and the Italian Eurofighters from Grosseto and Trapani, F-35 fighters and MQ-9 remotely piloted aircraft from Amendola, Tornado jets from Ghedi and the U.S. Air Force F-16s from Aviano,” he added.

During the exercise the Italian and U.S. fighters executed their mission to establish Air Superiority, facilitate Suppression of Enemy Air Defence and Close Air Support. These large force exercises provide aircrew and support personnel with the experience needed to maintain a ready force. By integrating multiple aircraft, aircrew are able to train for different objectives, which is critical to ensuring collective defence within an Alliance framework. The COMAO 20-10 exercise also incorporates U.S. Air Force Agile Combat Employment aspects with the F-16 pilots loading Link 16 keys, a tactical data link network, on to the aircraft and performing air-to-air refueling.

The DACCC is NATO's deployable air surveillance and control unit. The team conducts several training events each year. Highlights of the centre’s exercise schedule are the Ramstein Dust deployment exercises; one usually takes place in garrison, with the remote deployment of the embedded reach-back Ground Air Ground radio equipment, and the second event involves a deployment of the mobile unit abroad, often in support of Allied or national exercises. This deployable air control capability offers flexibility to NATO's Allied Air Command in executing the mission of providing air and space power to the Alliance.