Page 41 - AirForces Monthly - Issue 381 (December 2019)

A400M Atlas C1 ZM417 (c/n 060) from
No 70 Squadron lands at Odessa IAP
on June 27 – delivering the Royal
Navy divers and their equipment.
The ‘invisible’ air component

T hose closely following the equipment at Værnes Air Station, “Russian ships began shadowing NATO
first and last stages of each collocated with Trondheim Airport
iteration of Sea Breeze – in Norway – here, large quantities vessels arriving for Sea Breeze as soon
the deployment of exercise forces of USMC weapons, vehicles, as they had entered the Black Sea.”
before the start of operations equipment and ammunition are
and their subsequent withdrawal stockpiled as part of Marine 382-5622) arrived on July 21. June 27 aboard RAF A400M
after the manoeuvres have ended Corps Prepositioning Program- The US Navy was involved with a Atlas C1 ZM417 (c/n 060) of
– are familiar with the existence Norway (MCPP-N). Two aircraft pair of C-40A Clipper transports of No 70 Squadron at RAF Brize
of an ‘invisible’ air component. were involved in the delivery Fleet Logistics Support Squadron Norton, Oxfordshire. The divers
These are the transports, process, making a total of four 56 (VR-56) ‘Globemasters’ from themselves were picked up by
arriving at Odessa IAP to deliver flights to Odessa IAP – 06-8611 Naval Air Station Oceana in this same A400M on July 13, but
and retrieve the equipment and/ (c/n 382-5619) came in three times Virginia, temporarily detached to from Boryspil IAP. Their equipment
or personnel for the exercise. between June 27 and 29 (one NAS Sigonella in Sicily, in support remained at Odessa and was
This year the US Marine Corps flight each day), while 15-5831 of Sixth Fleet operations. The first retrieved by Atlas C1 ZM407 (c/n
unit attending the exercise arrived (c/n 382-5831) arrived on July 1. example – 166696 (c/n 40577) – 026), arriving at Odessa IAP late
from Norway and most of its Four flights were required to arrived at Odessa IAP on June 28, in the evening on July 22. The
equipment also came from there, return the equipment to Norway delivering equipment from Naval next day this aircraft departed for
aboard USAF C-130J-30s of the – again by C-130J-30s of the Station Rota in Spain. On July its home base via Ämari air base
37th Airlift Squadron (AS) ‘Blue 37th AS – aircraft 04-3142 (c/n 15, this equipment was returned in Estonia. Arriving at RAF Brize
Tail Flies’ from the 86th Airlift 382-5558), 06-8611 and 15-5822 to Rota by 166694 (c/n 40573). Norton just after midnight on
Wing (AW) at Ramstein Air Base (c/n 382-5822) touched down Royal Navy divers and their July 24, it was the last transport
in Germany. They took up their on July 14, while 07-8608 (c/n equipment were delivered on flight of Sea Breeze 2019. AFM
Sabre-rattling

Just before the start of Sea Breeze 2019, Sea Breeze 2019 was heading to its close. opportunity for NATO to conduct a helicopters aboard the SNMG2 ships
Russia ‘threw down the gauntlet’ by closing Furthermore, Russian ships began few intelligence, surveillance and also conducted ISR missions against
off certain areas of international waters shadowing NATO vessels arriving for reconnaissance (ISR) missions around the the Russian ships shadowing them.
in the Black Sea where the exercise was Sea Breeze as soon as they had entered Black Sea. For example, on July 3 the USAF With NATO, Ukrainian and Russian ships
originally supposed to take place. Moscow the Black Sea – the Smetlivy (870), a RQ-4B UAV 10-2041 and the US Navy P-8A operating in such close proximity to
went even further, organising a naval ‘Kashin’-class guided-missile destroyer, 169328 of VP-9 – both from NAS Sigonella each other, an incident was inevitable –
exercise of its own in the same location. began shadowing USS Carney, while the – operated in this area. On that same day at approximately 1000hrs local time on
This not only forced the Sea Breeze staff to Pytlivyy (868), a ‘Krivak II’-class frigate, the French Navy COMINT/ELINT ship Dupuy July 10, the Smetlivy deliberately slipped
change plans and divert the at-sea phase and Kasimov (055), a ‘Grisha III’-class de Lôme (A759) also entered the Black Sea in and out of the Sea Breeze exercise
to adjacent waters, but also meant the corvette, began shadowing HMCS Toronto – although not directly involved in Sea area just as US and Ukrainian ships
exercise fleet operated under the constant and HMS Duncan. Russian Navy aircraft Breeze, it monitored the exercise during were conducting a live firing exercise –
shadow of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet ships were there as well – at the start of the the at-sea phase – collecting electronic practising their naval gunnery skills on
and aircraft, especially since the Russian initial at-sea phase on July 2, a Su-24M signals emitted by sea, air and land- free-floating ‘killer tomato’ targets.
manoeuvres were wedged between Sea bomber made a few passes near USS based Russian communication systems, Russian ships were also present at the
Breeze’s two main exercise ranges. Russia Carney, just a few hours after it had left radars, etc. RAF Sentinel R1 aircraft also closing PHOTOEX on July 11. The exercise
also staged a large-scale aviation exercise the port of Odessa. Similarly, a Ka-27PS took part – aircraft ZJ692 and ZJ694 made fleet was shadowed by the Smetlivy and
in the annexed Crimea, which included came very close to the warship while four sorties in the region on July 8-11, the Azov (151), a ‘Ropucha II’-class landing
parachuting over 2,000 airborne troops it was returning to port on July 4. arriving straight from RAF Waddington, ship – the former was closer, sailing at a
from Il-76MD transports on July 11 – just as Nonetheless, this was also a perfect Lincolnshire. Finally, some of the shipborne distance of around 2-3 miles (3.2-4.8km).

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