PHOTO CAPTIONS:

1. U.S. Air Force (USAF) F-16CJ Wild Weasels (which primarily suppress enemy air defense systems) in exercise KEEN SWORD 99.

2. A USAF F-16 prepares for an exercise sortie at Misawa Air Base, Japan, while a Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) F-1 lands in the background.

3. Lt. Gen. Katsuhiko Iwasaki, Commander of the Northern Air Defense Force, JASDF, greets Lt. Gen. John Hall at Misawa Air Base, while Maj. Gen. Takayuki Yamamoto, Commander of the 3rd Air Wing, salutes.

4. Air Operations also included U.S. Marine Corps aircraft. F/A-18 Hornets from Marine Corps Station Iwakuni, Japan, taxi for a sortie in KEEN SWORD.

5. View from the cockpit of a USAF F-16 during exercise maneuvers in KEEN SWORD 99.

6. Ultimately, KEEN SWORD tested the aerial fighting skills of men, rather than machines. An F/A-18 pilot, Maj. Mike Orr, USMC, examines an AIM-9 Sidewinder missile before an exercise sortie.

7. Lt. Gen. John Hall monitors voice transmissions of a KEEN SWORD aerial dogfight, while Lt. Gen.
Katsuhiko Iwasaki looks on.

KEEN SWORD 99 was a bilateral Japan-U.S. field training exercise designed to enhance air operations in the defense of Japan. It was the largest field exercise of the year for U.S. Pacific Air Forces.

Approximately 150 aircraft and 24,000 Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) and U.S. Air Force (USAF) personnel participated in the exercise at Misawa Air Base, Japan and surrounding JASDF installations from 2-13 November 1998.

Participating Japanese units included JASDF F-16s from Komatsu Air Base and F-15s from Chitose Air Base. USAF F-16 Fighting Falcons, aircrews, and support personnel from Misawa's 35th Fighter Wing (FW) took part in the exercise. Other USAF participants included C-130s and C-21s from Yokota Air Base, KC-135s and E-3Bs from Kadena Air Base, and Marine F/A-18s from Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan. USAF B-1 Bombers deployed to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam also participated in the exercise.

"The exercise is a great opportunity for U.S. Forces to practice their warfighting skills with their Japanese counterparts," said Capt. Jay Boyd, 35th FW's KEEN SWORD project officer.

Scenarios focused on dissimilar air combat tactics and air defense exercises, including simulated attacks on U.S. Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ships and simulated targets in support of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF).

During the first week of the exercise, engagements involved two fighters in combat against two opposing fighters and then progressed to four versus four. The remainder of the exercise was primarily an air defense exercise (ADX), where the Air Defense of Japan was the primary focus. It included offensive and defensive counter-air scenarios.

"The ADX scenarios sometimes had large formations of aircraft fighting against each other. For example, 8 versus 12 aircraft. We also practiced our F-16 'Wild Weasel' mission of suppression of enemy air defenses using our HARM missiles to destroy enemy surface-to-air threats. Also, for the first time in a KEEN SWORD exercise, we participated in close air support with ground forces near Iwatesan Training Area," Capt. Boyd said. "Joint operations are always complicated, and because of the language differences with our Japanese pilots, we had to rely on air and ground controllers to translate the communications and then provide directions for the fighting," he explained.

"The exercise offered a little bit of everything," said Capt. Chris Stewart, a USAF F-16 pilot from Misawa. "From air-to-air combat to enemy defense suppression and close air support, KEEN SWORD gave us an opportunity to prove what kind of capabilities we have," Capt. Stewart said. "It tested our training against other units' training."

Lt. Gen. Katsuhiko Iwasaki, Commander, Northern Air Defense Force for Japan, and Maj. Gen. Takayuki Yamamoto, Commander of the JASDF 3rd Air Wing, greeted Lt. Gen. John Hall, USAF, Commander of U.S. Forces, Japan, when he arrived at Misawa Air Base to visit units participating in KEEN SWORD 99.

Maj. Gen. Charles F. Bolden, Jr., USMC, Deputy Commander, U.S. Forces, Japan, also visited units participating in the exercise at Misawa Air Base. There he spoke with troops and received an operations overview from the U.S. Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122, home-based at Iwakuni.

KEEN SWORD 99 provided realistic aerial combat training, which is necessary if Japanese and U.S. forces are to be ready for any defense contingency that would require the use of airpower.