Three Alaska Reservists are among the 18,000 personnel from the Marine Corps, Air Force, Navy, and Army participating in VALIANT SHIELD, a U.S. forces joint training exercise being held here Sept. 15-23.

"I am filling the role as the Deputy Airboss under Brig. Gen. Andrew Toth," said Lt. Col. Brian Baldwin, 477th FG F-22 staff officer and PACAF F-22 liaison. "I was responsible for coordinating the joint air plan, SPINS, schedule, and then helped lead mission planning on the carrier prior to the exercise. Although it is a busy position, we were successful in helping to relay information to the mission commander and the C2 agencies involved in the fight to allow them to conduct a safe tactical exercise."

Along with the military personnel there are 200 aircraft, two aircraft carriers, 19 surface ships and four submarines participating in the exercise. The training to take place during the exercise includes defensive counter-air, personnel recovery, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, and anti-submarine warfare.

In addition to Baldwin, Majs. Jonathan Gration and Brian Budde, 302nd Fighter Squadron F-22 pilots, are lending their expertise to the exercise.

"As the lead planner for Exercise NORTHERN EDGE in Alaska next summer, being here in Guam for VALIANT SHIELD has been invaluable," said Gration. "These two exercises are similar in nature and scope so we are taking the lessons learned here and using them as a foundation for success in our planning process moving forward."

The Alaska F-22s from the 3rd Wing's 90th Fighter Squadron are providing air dominance for complex, joint strike and defensive counter air mission sets. Alaska Reservist Maj. Brian Budde is serving as the active duty 90th Fighter Squadrons' weapons officer, ensuring that Raptor capabilities are optimized with joint assets, and that pilots are prepared to lead during all phases of mission execution.

"Flying the most capable airframe in the exercise comes with a lot of responsibility, especially in a joint environment, said Budde. "Raptor pilots at VALIANT SHIELD are getting a rare opportunity to fight with Navy, Marine, and Army assets operating from Aircraft Carriers and other islands in the region.  Being dislocated from the assets we fight with makes mission planning challenging. It forces our pilots, from the youngest wingman to the most senior instructor pilot, to use Raptor capabilities to provide real time in-flight leadership.  Having Raptors in the fight increases joint fighters' lethality and survivability, and ultimately enables mission success where it might otherwise be unattainable."