U.S. aircraft show off firepower in Balikatan exercises

From the Philippine News Agency (Apr 17): U.S. aircraft show off firepower in Balikatan exercises

Three of the 92 modern military aircraft of the United States participating the Balikatan Exercise 2015-- simultaneously being held in various military camps in Luzon and some parts of the Philippines -- conducted air assault in this vast military camp on Friday.

Capt. Mark Ruelos, 7ID public information head, said the air assault is part of the combined field training exercise between the U.S. forces and Philippine Army troopers in enhancing the interoperability and capacity of both forces in the conduct of joint and combined operations in responding to natural disasters, crisis and enhance the war fighting capability of the Filipino forces.

Air assault is one of the many combined exercises being conducted as part of the Field Training Exercises (FTX) and eventually on the Combined Live Fire Exercise (CALFEX) which will be held on April 20-30, this year.

The training utilizes one Boeing CH-47 Chinook, a twin-engine, tandem rotor heavy-lift helicopter used for troop movement, artillery placement and battlefield resupply because of its wide loading ramp at the rear of the fuselage and three external-cargo hooks and two Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk, a four-bladed, twin-engine, medium-lift utility helicopter.

The exercise is designed to further enhance Philippine and U.S. forces in capability development in the conduction of not only traditional military training but with civil military projects focusing on reaching out towards priority communities, Ruelos added.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=753849