An F-15 fighter jet from the Barnes 104th Fighter Wing during a past training exercise. (WNG file photo)
WESTFIELD—The US National Guard’s 104th Fighter Wing will be deploying to Florida today to participate in combat training.
The 104th Fighter Wing will be deploying eight F-15 Eagle aircraft, one C-130 Hercules and over 150 Guard members to Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida. The group will be there for approximately four weeks to participate in the Weapons System Evaluation Exercise Program (WSEP). The deployment was announced via press release Thursday evening.
“Any future combat scenarios will be joint or coalition operations and so it is very important for us to have the opportunity to train outside of our own comfort zone,” said Maj. Brett “Dutch” VanderPas, in the press release. “It is very possible in any future combat operations we would be fighting alongside other countries and other types of aircraft and you never want the first time to be in combat. It is invaluable training we do not get very often back home.”
According to the press release, the program is designed to “evaluate and validate operational missiles in realistic air combat scenarios.”
The program taking place in Florida, according to VanderPas in the press release, is due to the fact that warmer weather allows for more flying opportunities.
