RAF Waddington is hosting an international exercise, including German, Italian, and US Air Forces

A major international exercise is taking place today at RAF Waddington involving the air forces from the US, Germany and Italy as well as the UK. Cobra Warrior is designed to exercise participants in high intensity large force tactical training. Beginning this week , it will continue until the 23rd of September.

Lincolnshire's RAF Waddington station is hosting a major international event, that will see forces from Germany, Italy and the US take part.

The exercise Cobra Warrior, is a biannual event, where participants tactical training is challenged at high intensity.

This is taking place from the beginning of the week, to the 23rd of September, it will provide practice for these forces in collaboration and understanding of one another's uniqueness in aircraft abilities.

RAF Representative from the Air Space Warfare Centre, Group Captain Andy Burton describes what the exercise entails:

"The type of flying we're doing here is collective training, so we've got large amounts of air space up in the north sea and up to the borders between England and Scotland. We're flying large packages of aircraft supported by lots of ground elements as well, in a realistic threat environment with lots of red air and red ground threats aginst the most challenging missions that we can put our forces against. That's all about preparing them for those missions if they need it, and giving them the chance to practice it in that coolishing environment so that we're ready to do it together.

"If we don't do this training then essentially we become stale, we lose the ability to work together."

The German Tornados and Italian Air Force Eurofighter Typhoons will be seen and heard regularly in the area this month.

The German Detachment Commander, Steffan Kollner tells is what it's like at Waddington:

"It's really really nice, we have all the support we can really ask for, if not better, I always say to my people, we're going to get the icing on the cake here and that's flying wise, and for the technicians and everything. So, we are happy here, and being in Lincoln it's really nice, a nice area here… so we enjoy it."

Agreeing, Marco Setini is a member of the Italian Air Force and tells us what Lincolnshire means to him:

"It's the third time, actually for us, here and for myself as well, so we are almost at home- we feel at home. Everybody, I mean most of the personel feel happy to be here and enjoy the time spent in Lincolnshire, they take the weekends to explore around, which is normally not a place you use as a tourist, so, I think they're, I'm pretty sure they're appreciating all the surrounding.

"Every time we are here there's so many people that, are really happy to see us and to take pictures, and all the spotters, we like them, we appreciate that and it's always a nice welcome here in Waddington."

The exercise utilises numerous bases across the UK with RAF, Army, United States Air Force, German Air Force, Italian Air Force and North Atlantic Treaty Organistion involvement. Cobra warrior 2022–2 is the first iteration in several years due to Covid disruption.