Five European nations joined the Pitch Black 2024 air force exercise from July 12 to August 2, the continent’s largest presence Down Under. France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK sent aircraft to the biennial exercise centered on Australia’s north.
Unfortunately, on 24 July, after an Italian F-2000 Eurofighter crashed, fortunately without loss of life, the European Air Force departed with fewer aircraft than it had arrived.
Collectively, these five European countries provided a third of the aircraft participating in Pitch Black 2024. They include Rafale, AV-8, Eurofighter, F-35A and F-35B fighter jets, MRDT tankers, A400M transport aircraft and Italian aircraft. E550 aerial forecast aircraft.
France, Germany and Spain are jointly conducting a deployment called Pacific Skies, which ambitiously includes exercises in five locations: Alaska, Hawaii, Japan, Australia and India.
It’s the 20th year France has joined the pitch block, and the Australian leg formed part of its Pegasus mission „which aims to strengthen operational readiness with France’s allies and allies in the Indo-Pacific, with military bases in New Caledonia. French Polynesia”.
French Ambassador to Australia Pierre-André Imbert said Asian Military Survey On the importance of training: „It’s very important, so we have different training to make sure we’re working with each other and ready to help each other.”
Imbert said the Pegasus was „particularly complicated” because it saw one faction settle in the east from France and the other in the west, both eventually marrying in Australia.
In line with France’s Indo-Pacific strategy announced in 2018, Imbert added, “That is why it is so important for us to ensure freedom of navigation to access the commons and to demonstrate that we are ready to get here and get here very quickly. Join our allies, defend our territories and our friends.”
Lt. Col. Fabian Schröppe, commander of the Luftwaffe’s sub-division, said this was Germany’s second deployment to Australia, explaining: „This is the largest and most extensive program and deployment the German Luftwaffe has ever undertaken. Our main goal is to develop and improve our capabilities in terms of strategic deployment around the world.
Deploying five Eurofighters and two A400Ms, Lt Col Scrope explained: „We want to gain a common understanding of how others train to improve our operational capabilities, operate flexibly and succeed together more dynamically in the training environment. Day and night, air-to-ground, air-to-air.”
Exercise Pitch Block 2024 involves more than 140 aircraft and 4,435 personnel from 20 countries.
By Gordon Arthur