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122nd Fighter Wing Bold Quest 13.2

The 122nd Fighter Wing hosted representatives from thirteen countries, here, from Sept. 4 ­ 24, 2013 for Bold Quest 13.2, a multinational coalition capability demonstration.

BQ 13.2 is an event to test and verify communications technologies across varying combat aircraft, sponsored by the Joint Staff with participation from US Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, SOCOM, STRATCOM, and Army/Air National Guard, and NATO partner organizations. It also tests emerging technologies and value added capability packages to communicate information between air and ground forces.

The key initiatives and activities being conducted during BQ 13.2 are Joint Fire Support Joint Mission Thread, Digitally Aided Fires/Close Air Support, Friendly Force Tracking, Combat Identification Server, and JOLTED Tactics (cellular based tactical communications). These are all being conducted on BQ 13.2 network architecture with distributed sites in a live/virtual capability development test environment. Technologies being demonstrated are various types of radios, tactical data links and network equipment used to support joint fires, joint terminal attack control, personnel recovery and other missions.

The demonstration will collect both technical data on systems and subjective judgments from the warfighters using them. BQ 13.2 leverages the varied ground and air environments and capabilities in Indiana to conduct approximately ten days of live/virtual, scenario-based operations across multiple initiative domains for data collection.

This is the third and largest Bold Quest demonstration that the Fort Wayne based, 122nd Fighter Wing, 163rd Fighter Squadron has taken part in. Navy F-18 Super Hornet Strike Fighter aircraft, Marine AV-8B Harrier, French Mirage 2000D Fighters, H-60 and UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, Indiana National Guard Shadow and Denmark sponsored UAS Sky Watch Huginn Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and the 122nd Fighter Wings A-10C Thunderbolt II were included in both day and night scenarios during the demonstration. Grissom Air Reserve Bases KC-135R Stratotanker Refueling Aircraft and NATO E3A Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft (AWACS) were based at Grissom, also in support of the exercise.

Lt. Col. Olivier Kaladjian, Squadron Commander, Fighter and Experimentation Squadron 05.330, French Air Force commented by saying, ³the biggest challenge is to improve the systems on the aircraft in real time, which is also our largest success so far. By matching our systems to other aircraft systems as we go, we have not only taken necessary big steps to improve our ability to communicate as a coalition force but also have taken every opportunity to interact with other coalition partners to strengthen relationships, it¹s not all about the planes.²

More than eighty U.S. and Coalition Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC¹s) took part in the demonstration at both Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center, Edinburgh, Ind. and Muscatatuck Urban Training Complex, Butlerville, Ind. working with Digitally Aided Close Air Support equipment and procedures and Air-to-Ground Non-Cooperative Target Identification.
The base has prepared well and executed to plan the various components that are required to successfully plan, program and execute an exercise such as this. Capt. Roderick Metzler, 163rd Fighter Squadron Scheduling Officer and this year¹s chief program officer for the 122nd Fighter Wings part in BQ13.2 said, ³to put this on, this has been a total team effort, from Senior Master Sgt. Steven Till in Security Forces to Logistics, Avionics, Fire Services, Maintenance and Operations Squadron, the support has been outstanding ­ making this year a huge success!²

Click here to find out more facts on BQ 13.2

For more information, please contact MSgt Darin Hubble, 122d Fighter Wing, Base Public Affairs Superintendent at (260) 478-3314.

Attached Photo Caption:
Members of the 122nd Fighter Wing stand shoulder to shoulder with French Air Force, U.S. Naval and Marine forces during Bold Quest 13.2. The Wing hosted representatives from thirteen countries from Sept. 4 ­ 24, 2013 for Bold Quest 13.2, a multinational coalition capability demonstration. BQ 13.2 is an event to test and verify communications technologies across varying combat aircraft, sponsored by the Joint Staff with participation from US Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, SOCOM, STRATCOM, and Army/Air National Guard, and NATO partner organizations. It also tests emerging technologies and value added capability packages to communicate information between air and ground forces. This is the third and largest Bold Quest demonstration that the Fort Wayne based, 122nd Fighter Wing, 163rd Fighter Squadron has taken part in. Navy F-18 Super Hornet Strike Fighter aircraft, Marine AV-8B Harrier and French Mirage 2000D Fighters. (U.S. Air Force Photo by: Staff Sgt. Stephen Bush – Released)