Close Air Support in Ex Pitch Black
At Exercise Pitch Black in the Northern Territory, members of No 4 Squadron Combat Control Team (4SQN CCT) are witness to a showcase of RAAF tactical capability alongside international partners. Here’s the situation:
A blue force mostly based in Darwin is made up of the RAAF FA-18 Classic and Super Hornets, Thailand’s F-16s and Indonesia’s and Singapore’s aircraft, with multiple fixed wing support aircraft including the AP-3C and King Air 350s conducting intelligence, surveillance and response missions.
As a part of red force, No 76 Squadron (76SQN) has deployed six Hawks to RAAF Base Tindal where they will attempt to penetrate the defensive screens of the blue force offensive air and strike missions with simulated combat air patrols of two or four ships in concert with the 75SQN Classic Hornets and the US Marines Corps Hornets.
The Commanding Officer of 76SQN, WGCDR Chris Hake, says his unit simulates a plucky squadron of low technology fighters trying to defend their territory.
“Our main tactic is our raw courage though we were using ground and airborne early warning controllers to give us situational awareness of the threat,” he says.
“We can then react accordingly to provide air targets for the blue force to maximise its training.
“Pitch Black gives junior members of the squadron their first exposure to a large force employment exercise.
“This is excellent as they have just completed their introductory fighter course small tactics, which is up to four ships, and can now see how this integrates with packages of up to 50 versus 30.”
Red force, however, did manage to penetrate blue force defences and make a few successful kills during several missions.
After being deliberately constrained at first, red force were allowed to become more aggressive as the blue force capability progressed and improved to continue providing a challenge.
Ground-based air defence is simulated by surface-to-air missile emitters based at the Delamere Range to provide challenges for the attacking fighters as they avoid a realistic threat.
In the first week of the exercise, the fighters practised smaller discrete packages of three to four concurrent missions before they build up to larger packages in the second week with multiple sweep and offensive counter air assets successfully supporting strike missions to engage targets at Bradshaw and Delamere.
C-130s are also involved on Pitch Black with insertion and extraction missions of 4SQN combat controllers to airfields in the vicinity of Timber Creek and the ranges, while Classic and Super Hornets provide close-air-support against red force ground troops.
As Air Force’s premier air combat exercise, Pitch Black began on July 27 and will end on August 17.