Red Flag-Alaska 2009 exercise season to kick off Published April 8, 2009 By Complied staff reports 354th Fighter Wing Public Affairs EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska -- The season's first iteration of Pacific Air Forces' premier air combat exercise, Red Flag-Alaska 2009, kicks off April 16 and runs through May 1. RF-A 09-2 will welcome approximaetly 1,400 personnel from the United States, France, and NATO. Red Flag-Alaska, a series of Pacific Air Forces commander-directed field training exercises for U.S. forces, provides joint offensive counter-air, interdiction, close air support, and large force employment training in a simulated combat environment. It provides U.S. and allied pilots, aircrews and operational support personnel the opportunity to train and improve their air combat skills in preparation for a myriad of worldwide contingencies. The exercises are conducted on the Pacific Alaska Range Complex, the largest training range in America at more than 65,000 square miles, with air operations flown out of Eielson AFB and Elmendorf AFB in Anchorage, Alaska. Units are organized as an air expeditionary wing at Eielson with a subordinate air expeditionary group at Elmendorf. Alaska's size enables the military to have the largest air-ground training complex in America. The exercise schedule for the 2009 RF-A season is as follows: Red Flag- Alaska 09-2: April 16- May 1 Red Flag- Alaska 09-3: July 23- August 7 Red Flag- Alaska 10-1: October 1-16 For more information about Red Flag-Alaska visit the Eielson website at www.eielson.af.mil