Indian Air Force Mirage 2000s before a sortie
The exercise Cobra Warrior is conducted two times per year and is the largest aerial exercise in the United Kingdom. The exercise is facilitated by the no 92 Squadron of the Royal Air Force, which is based at RAF Waddington. The exercise is intended to train participants in tactical air warfare operations in large groups and at a high intensity. This edition of the exercise Cobra Warrior, also known as CW 2023-1, took place from 2 March until 24 March 2023. More than 70 aircraft and helicopters took part in the exercise and were guided by command personnel from RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire. During the exercise, a complex scenario would be flown by the participants to the exercise every other day. During the past non-flying days, the units were able to deploy their own exercises locally to prepare for the Cobra Warrior missions. Experience shows that this option was used daily by all participants of the training.
92 Tactics and Training Squadron
The no 92 Squadron, also known as no 92 (East India) Squadron, and currently as the no 92 Tactics and Training Squadron of the Royal Air Force is a test and evaluation squadron of the RAF and is currently based at RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire. The unit was formed as part of the Royal Flying Corps at London Colney as a fighter squadron on 1 September 1917. The squadron deployed to France in July 1918 and saw action for only four months, until the end of the First World War. During the conflict, the unit flew both air superiority and direct ground support missions. After a long history with the RAF, the unit has evolved into the current no 92 Tactics and Training Squadron. The unit is responsible for establishing modern tactics and to provide training opportunities to the operational units so that the RAF can grow along with the current military situation in the world. As part of its duties at the Air Warfare Centre, the no 92 Squadron helped to set up and conduct the exercise Cobra Warrior in 2019. This exercise was then conducted for participating units of the RAF, Luftwaffe, Italian and Israeli Air Force. Since then, Cobra Warrior has grown to its current format as it is being implemented by the unit this year. The commander of the current no 92 Squadron is Squadron Leader John McFadden. He is the person within the squadron who coordinated this exercise in 2023. McFadden stated, “We are looking forward to delivering Exercise Cobra Warrior 23-1. 92 Sqn have developed a challenging air-led multi-domain exercise focused on pitting our NATO, JEF and International partners against a capable peer adversary within a contested degraded and operationally limited threat environment. Over three weeks, we will bring together our capabilities and deliver the full spectrum of Air Operations, including Defensive and Offensive Counter-Air as well as Strike Operations. These will include RAF Regiment Precision Strike Teams, Air Manoeuvre operations to support ground forces, and also developing our Joint Personnel Recovery Capability”.
Objectives
The Cobra Warrior exercise is the final piece of the Royal Air Force’s tactical training. The exercise is designed to qualify personnel in various roles in the Royal Air Force. During the exercise, the training of the Qualified Weapons Instructor, Qualified Multi-engined Tactics Instructor, Qualified Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance and Qualified Space Instructor is completed. All these roles are dealt with in a tactical chess game and can train optimally in a unique environment. The goal of Cobra Warrior is to develop the tactical skills of the participating aircrews and support elements within a Composite Air Operation (COMAO) environment. The exercise provides valuable opportunities for all participating elements to practice and develop tactics, techniques and procedures in complex scenarios against a realistic opponent. The military world is constantly changing. The world of 10 years ago is no longer the world of today. With the use of the expertise of the no 92 Squadron, the exercise is continuously further developed and adapted to the geopolitical and military balance that is current in the world at that time. The lessons of this edition of the exercise, together with editions from the past, are the input for the edition that will take place later this year. Group Captain Jim Calvert, is the Exercise Director of the exercise Cobra Warrior. Jim explains; “What Cobra Warrior provides us is what we call collective training. What nations and squadrons will do is they will train their crews to be tactical experts on their individual platforms. What an exercise such as Cobra Warrior does is it brings all of those platforms together, both UK and partner-nations. It just allows us to train and integrate together, so that we can prove, and we can test, and adjust and enhance our interoperability.” For the Royal Air Force, another important aspect of the exercise is that it provides the opportunity to complete training within the Mission Employment Phase for future RAF weapons instructors. The level of training combined with the variety of training partners helps to achieve the required standards within the Weapons School criteria.
RAF Waddington
The majority of the Non-English or Non-American units were based at RAF Waddington near the city of Lincoln in the United Kingdom during Cobra Warrior. One of the countries that used this airbase was Finland. This country sent a total of six McDonnell Douglas F/A-18C Hornets to the United Kingdom. The Finnish Hornets came from Rovaniemi Air Base in the north of the country. The aircraft are assigned to the HävLLv 11, which is part of the Lapin Lennosto Wing. The Finns’ fighters were supported by some PC-12 light transport aircraft which took ground crew and support equipment to RAF Waddington. Finland was on the threshold of NATO membership when the exercise started. On Tuesday, 4 April 2023, the country officially joined NATO as the 31st member state in response to, among other things, the Russian threat as a result of the Ukraine war. Finland has been a loyal member of the Partnership for Peace programme for many years. The PfP countries are closely linked to NATO but not member states. PfP participants often train together with units from the NATO countries. Finland has also been a participant in the United Kingdom-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) programme for some time now. The JEF includes the countries Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. All countries, except Sweden, are members of NATO. The JEF is intended to be a pool of troops on high readiness and adaptability designed to enhance the UK’s ability to respond quickly anywhere in the world. This is done with like-minded allies or on behalf of international organisations such as the United Nations or NATO. The Finns would usually fly twice a day on the non- Cobra Warrior days for their individual training. The Belgian Air Force also participated in Cobra Warrior. The Belgians came from the 10 Wing of the Belgian airbase Kleine- Brogel in northern Belgium. In total, the Belgians participated with six F-16AM Fighting Falcon fighter aircraft. The aircraft of the Belgian Air Force were logistically supported during the exercise by several Airbus A400M transport aircraft from the 15 Wing, which is based at Brussels Melsbroek Air Base. What is special is the fact that the Belgians only participated in the first two weeks of the exercise. On Friday during the second week, the F-16s returned home. On the non-Cobra Warrior days, the Belgians also flew various individual training sessions from RAF Waddington. Several aircraft have also been sighted in the low flying area in the Lake District in the north of England. The Belgians usually use this area more often to train low flying skills and are therefore qualified to fly here. “It is wonderful once again to welcome our fellow RAF and international colleagues to RAF Waddington to participate in this world class air exercise,” stated Group Captain Mark Lorriman-Hughes, the RAF Waddington Station Commander. “Cobra Warrior provides an invaluable opportunity for international Allies and Partners to train together in developing operational tactics in the air”, he added.
Indian Air Force
One of the most remarkable participants in the exercise Cobra Warrior 2023-1 was the participation of the Air Force of India (IAF). The IAF had travelled to the British RAF Waddington for Cobra Warrior with a total of more than 145 air force personnel. The delegation had gathered from all corners of India at Jamnagar Air Force Station. The main objective for the Indians was to learn to participate in exercises that allow training with multiple types of combat aircraft. Practicing combat scenarios with and against types such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon, F/A-18 Hornet and the Eurofighter Typhoon is very special and also very educational for the Indian delegation. Flight Lieutenant Samarth Shukla of the Indian Air Force explained, “We have travelled halfway around the world, including stops in Saudi Arabia and Greece, to reach this place. Exercise Cobra Warrior is a great opportunity for us to learn and to fly with other nations. It has given us the opportunity to learn from other nations, share our experiences and, all in all, improve us. The aim of the exercise is to participate in diverse fighter aircraft engagements and learn from the best practices of various Air Forces. When we get back, we will share our experiences and improve the Indian Air Force as a whole.” Group Captain Pranav Raj, is the commander of the 7th Mirage squadron ‘Battle Axes’. He is the Exercise Director of the Indian Air Force during this detachment. Pranav stated, “The team has faced several challenges, including the weather, which is quite different from Gwalior in Central India. More than 80% of the team saw snow for the first time. Despite these challenges, the maintenance team has done a great job keeping all five aircraft available for missions. The exercise was a great learning experience as the Indian Air Force has flown with F-18s and F-16s and participated in the full spectrum of air operations, including offensive and defensive counter missions”.
The participating delegation from India consisted of five Mirage 2000I and 2000TI fighters (respectively two Mirage 2000I and three Mirage 2000TI aircraft). The fact that Mirages from the IAF come to this exercise can simply be called special. The IAF has only a relatively small pool of these aircraft in its orbat. Most fighters in the Indian Air Force are MiG-21 and Su-30 fighters. The Indian Air Force has only one wing that operates with the Dassault Mirage 2000. This unit is the 40 Wing based at Gwalior/ Maharajpur Air Force Station which is part of the Central Air Command. The 40 Wing was formally established on 28 November 1982. After its establishment, the wing would immediately be equipped with the Mirage 2000. The 40 Wing is the only wing in India to fly the Dassault Mirage 2000. The first Mirages were delivered to this wing from the end of 1985. The Mirages during Cobra Warrior came from two squadrons, namely the 1 Squadron ‘The Tigers’ and the 7 Squadron ‘Battle Axes’. The aircraft were escorted by an Ilyushin IL-78 ‘Midas’ tanker during the long flight from India to Europe. The IL-78 comes from Agra Air Force Station of the Central Air Command and is assigned to the 78 Squadron of the 4th Wing. This unit is also known as ‘Valorous Mars’ in India. Two Boeing C-17A Globemaster III strategic transport aircraft were used for the transport. These aircraft both came from Hindon Air Force Station of the Western Air Command. These aircraft fly there with the 81 Squadron ‘Skylords’, which is part of the 28th Wing. The fact that the Dassault Mirage 2000 of the Indian Air Force came to Europe was very unique, given that the aircraft are already getting old and the fact that the IAF only has 56 airframes in use. The Dassault Mirage 2000 is referred to in India as the Mirage 2000 ‘Vajra’, freely translated from Hindi this means ‘Lightning’. The Air Force of India has received a total of 48 single-seat Mirage 2000H and eight two-seat Mirage 2000TH aircraft. The big difference with the version in service with the French Air Force is the fact that the Indian Mirages are able to carry the Russian R-73AE Archer missile under the wings. As is known, the Indian Air Force also has many Russian types in service, which made the upgrade to carry this missile a logical choice for the Indians. The Mirages can carry the R-73AE since the 2007 upgrade. From 2015, the IAF’s Mirages were upgraded to the Mirage 2000-5 MK2 standard. Following the upgrade to the Mirage 2000-5 standard, the IAF’s Mirages are referred to as the Mirage 2000I and Mirage 2000TI. This version of the aircraft is an Indian specific version for the Indian Air Force, the aircraft is similar to the Mirage 2000-5 Mk2 which is equipped with a mix of Indian, French and Israeli avionics and weapons packages. The contract was signed in 2011 and the first upgraded aircraft was delivered in 2015. Dassault-Aviation updated the first few Mirage 2000H, 2000TH aircraft to 2000I, 2000TI standard. The later updates were carried out by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. It is the intention that the Mirages of the IAF standard will last at least until the year 2030. From that moment on, the intention is that the aircraft will be replaced by a new type to be purchased. Which type is for now still an unanswered question.
RAF Coningsby, Lakenheath, Brize-Norton, Leeming
In addition to RAF Waddington, many participants of the exercise were based at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire. The Royal Air Force participated from this airbase with a large number of Typhoons from the local units on this air base. The Royal Saudi Air Force was one of the foreign participants in the Cobra Warrior exercise. The Saudi Arabian Air Force participated with a total of six EF2000 Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft. The aircraft all came from Taif/King Fahd Air Base where the aircraft are part of the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) 2nd Wing. This unit has three squadrons flying the Typhoon on active duty at this air base. These squadrons are; the no 3 Squadron, the no 10 Squadron and the no 80 Squadron. During the Cobra Warrior exercise, all three of these units were present at RAF Coningsby to train with the International Alliance. All three squadrons were present in the United Kingdom with two aircraft and were all equipped with the squadron markings of the relevant units. It is quite special to see these planes in Western Europe, because these aircraft don’t come this way very often. The RSAF aircraft were supported by transport aircraft of the type Lockheed C-130 Hercules. The Typhoons were escorted to the United Kingdom by two Airbus A330 MRTT aircraft which carried also the associated ground crew on board. These aircraft would also refuel the Typhoons in the air during the flight to the west. From the American airbase RAF Lakenheath, F-15E Strike Eagle fighter aircraft participated in the exercise. These aircraft are assigned to the 48th Fighter Wing of the United States Air Force Europe. The specific unit that took part in Cobra Warrior was the 492nd Fighter Squadron ‘Bolars/Madhatters’. The entire exercise was supported by several Voyager tankers operating from RAF Brize-Norton in the south of England. In addition, the British Joint Helicopter Command was temporarily stationed at RAF Leeming from where it took part in the exercise. The RAF’s Air Mobility Force also took part in the exercise where elements of 16 Air Assault Brigade were deployed on an associated ground mission which formed part of the overall exercise scenario. The helicopters were deployed and were in the meantime supported by the combat aircraft in the same area.
Text: Joris van Boven and Alex van Noije Photos: Alex van Noije