Largest ever Pitch Black drills take off
EXERCISE Pitch Black, Australia’s largest international air combat training engagement will begin on July 12 until August 2 over the airspace of the Northern Territory. Exercise Pitch Black is the Royal Australian Air Force’s (RAAF) most significant flying activity for strengthening international engagement and enhancing their ability to work with overseas partners.
This year’s iteration of Pitch Black will see more than 140 combat aircraft and over 4000 personnel from 20 nations taking part in the biennial exercise, the largest ever in its 43 years of existence. Pitch Black is mainly a series of increasingly complex joint-force scenarios with combat aircraft and supporting aircraft such as tankers which provide air-to-air refuelling (AAR) support while airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft watch the skies. The aircraft would operate from the RAAF air bases Darwin and Tindal with additional tanker and transport aircraft operating from Queensland’s Amberley base.
The air forces of France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand, the United Kingdom, the United States deployed various aircraft to participate, including first-timers the Philippines, Spain, Italy, and Papua New Guinea. Personnel from Fiji and Brunei will also take part in the exercise for the first time alongside their Canadian and New Zealand counterparts. The US and European Multinational Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) unit are also present at Pitch Black 2024.
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Another milestone is the participation of the Italian Navy’s ITS Cavour aircraft carrier and its embarked aircraft.-shp/adj/dl (Pix:Australia DOD)
Among the aircraft taking part in the event are:
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF)
Boeing EA-18G Growler, F/A-18F Super Hornet, E-7A Wedgetail AEW&C, Lockheed Martin F-35A, C-130J Hercules, Airbus A330/KC-30A MRTT
French Air and Space Force (FASF)
Dassault Rafale, Airbus A330 MRTT, A400M, CN235
German Air Force
Eurofighter Typhoon, Airbus A330 MRTT, A400M
Indian Air Force (IAF)
Sukhoi Su-30MKI Flanker
Indonesian Air Force
Lockheed Martin F-16A/B/C/D
Italian Air Force
Lockheed Martin F-35A, F-35B, C-130J Hercules, Eurofighter Typhoon, G550 AEW&C, Boeing KC-767
Italian Navy
Lockheed Martin F-35B, AV-8B Harrier II
Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF)
Mitsubishi F-2A/B, Boeing E-767 airborne early warning and control (AWACS)
Papua New Guinea Defence Force (PNGDF)
PAC-750
Philippine Air Force (PAF)
Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50PH Fighting Eagle
Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF)
Boeing F/A-18D Hornet, Airbus A400M
Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF)
Boeing F-15K Slam Eagle
Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF)
Lockheed Martin F-16C/D, Boeing F-15SG, G550 CAEW&C, Airbus A330 MRTT
Royal Air Force (RAF)
Eurofighter Typhoon, Airbus A330/Voyager MRTT
Spanish Air and Space Force (SASF)
Eurofighter Typhoon, Airbus A400M
Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF)
Saab JAS-39C/D Gripen
United States Air Force (USAF)
Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor
United States Marine Corps (USMC)
Bell Boeing MV-22 Osprey