Happy Tuesday, FighterSweep Fans! As is our standard, we are on the road again and spending time with some great Americans at the 173rd Fighter Wing of Oregon’s Air National Guard contingent.

This week kicks off Sentry Eagle, the largest air-to-air combat exercise in the Guard. It is an LFE, or Large Force Employment exercise designed to give Guard and Reserve component fighter pilots an opportunity to hone their skills in DACT, or Dissimilar Air Combat Training.

This year’s exercise features a variety of assets, from Guard F-15s and Block 52 Super Weasels to active-duty Navy F/A-18E Super Hornets and other Air Force Vipers. It’s a robust training evolution, with participating units flying in from all over the continental United States.

“This exercise is a fantastic opportunity for different Fighter Squadrons across the country to take advantage of our exceptional airspace, weather, and hospitality and allow the pilots to train as they would fight in combat,” said 173rd Fighter Wing Commander Colonel Kirk Pierce.  “Sentry Eagle allows units to set the objectives of the exercise to meet their unit’s training objectives.”

Fighters and tankers from the participating units will take-off and land at Kingsley Field, with the actual training missions taking place in the MOAs over eastern Oregon.

In addition, this coming Saturday, Kingsley will be hosting an Open House, allowing civic leaders and residents of the nearby communities to come out and get a front-row seat to the training exercises, in addition to static displays and the opportunity to meet members of the participating units.

Stay tuned throughout the week for more from Klamath Falls!