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ANDRAVIDA AIR BASE, Greece — The 492nd Fighter Squadron, part of the 48th Fighter Wing at Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England departed Andravida AB, Greece, April 8, 2022 after participating in INIOCHOS 22.
INIOCHOS 22 is an annual Hellenic air force-sponsored operational and tactical level field training exercise hosted by the Hellenic Air Tactics Center at Greece’s fighter weapons school and in various locations across Greece.
The Hellenic air force exercise is designed to provide advanced and realistic training for aircrew and the integration of allied and partner air forces during joint operations and air defenses in order to maintain joint readiness.
Relationships between allied and partner air forces are vital to accomplish real world missions in contingency environments.
“There is no better opportunity to come together as many nations and we appreciate the Hellenic air force and Greece allowing us to come here and participate,” said Lt. Gen. Steven Basham, U.S. Air Forces in Europe — Air Force Africa deputy commander.
INIOCHOS 22 saw participation from members from the United States, Greek, Cypriot, French, Israeli, Romanian, Italian, Slovenian, Austrian and Canadian militaries.
“The cooperation is excellent,” Basham continued. “We continue to learn from our Hellenic air force partners but also build strong relationships so that if we come back in a time of crisis we’re more than ready to actually join up with them and pick up right where we left off.”
A large air training exercise such as INIOCHOS 22 provides training scenarios that give participants the opportunity to develop capabilities planning and conduct complex air operations in a multinational, joint force environment.
“Every year the Hellenic air force hosts this exercise and every year consistently gets better and better,” Lt. Col. Daniel Etue, 492nd Fighter Squadron commander. “These are the same people we're working with time and time again so it's more than just saying ‘developing relationships’ — they’re truly developing friendships and those friendships are going to be what gets us ready and prepares us if we ever do have to fight.”
The participation from the 48th Fighter Wing went beyond aircrew — Airmen in various career fields provided support in order to ensure the missions happened successfully.
Maintenance Airmen, aircrew flight equipment technicians, Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) operators and others participated during the three week training exercise. INIOCHOS 22 provided the environment to allow these professionals to maximize their capabilities during contingency operations.
“We’ve got a lot of folks who are working really, really hard to keep America and our NATO allies and partners safe,” Etue said. “And it's my absolute honor and privilege to watch them do it every day,” Etue said.
| Date Taken: | 04.08.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 04.09.2022 15:48 |
| Story ID: | 418187 |
| Location: | ANDRAVIDA AIR BASE, GR |
| Web Views: | 250 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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