An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : Media : News : News Article View
NEWS | March 2, 2023

Pacific Air Forces Commander Opens Australia Airshow, Aerospace & Defence Exposition

By Tech. Sgt. Hailey Haux Pacific Air Forces Public Affairs

AVALON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Australia -- Gen. Ken Wilsbach, Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) commander, highlighted the strength of the U.S.-Australia alliance at the opening ceremony for AVALON – the 2023 Australian International Airshow and Aerospace & Defence Exposition – Feb. 28.

AVALON 23 is Australia’s premier aerospace exhibition – airshow and tradeshow – offering an opportunity for partner nations to enhance relationships and boost regional security through expanded military-to-military cooperation. The event is scheduled to host 22 military service chiefs and numerous civilian defense dignitaries from more than 40 countries.

“The U.S. and Australia have a long history of cooperation in air and space,” said Wilsbach, noting that the birthplace of PACAF – or Far East Air Forces as it was known in 1944 – was in Brisbane, Australia. “At this very moment, somewhere in the Indo-Pacific, our forces are operating together propagating our strategy and advancing shared interests between the U.S. and Australia.”

PACAF’s steadfast relationship with Australia, deeply rooted in common principles and shared values, stems from working together daily across a full spectrum of operations.

“There’s no other country with whom the U.S. trains more closely, operates more seamlessly and with whom we share more of our most sensitive technologies,” said U.S. Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy, during the opening ceremony. “There’s no other military that we have fought, side-by-side, in every major conflict for more than 100 years.”

The U.S. Department of Defense is in full force at AVALON 23, featuring nearly 300 members with a variety of aircraft and systems, including the F-22 Raptor, KC-46 Pegasus, C-17 Globemaster III, AH-64 Apache, and the M142 HIMARS, among others.

CONNECT WITH USINDOPACOM
Facebook

Like Us
X
362,631
Follow Us

ENGAGE & CONNECT MORE WITH PACOM

                                                 

IN THE USINDOPACOM NEWS
The United States, Nepal Conclude Multinational Peacekeeping Exercise Shanti Prayas IV
Combined service members from 18 countries participate in the closing ceremony of Exercise Shanti Prayas IV at the Birendra Peace Operations Centre parade field on March 4, 2024. Shanti Prayas IV is a multinational peacekeeping exercise sponsored by the Nepali Army and U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and is the latest in a series of exercises designed to support peacekeeping operations. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl John Hall)
March 4, 2024 - Nepal and the United States conducted the closing ceremony of exercise Shanti Prayas IV at Birendra Peace Operations Training Centre, Panchkhal, Nepal, Mar. 4, 2024...

U.S., ROK Marines Conduct Exercise Freedom Shield 24
U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Todd Sturgill, the company commander for Headquarters Company, Headquarters Battalion, 1st Marine Division, speaks to Marines about building a combined command post in preparation for Freedom Shield 24 in Pohang, South Korea, Feb. 25, 2024. FS 24 is a defense-oriented exercise designed to strengthen the ROK-U.S. Alliance, enhance the combined defense posture, and further strengthen security and stability on the Korean peninsula. Sturgill is a native of Virginia. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Amanda R. Taylor)
March 4, 2024 - U.S. Marines from across III Marine Expeditionary Force, and Marines from 1st Marine Division, I MEF, deployed from Japan and the United States to join their ROK counterparts to exercise as the Combined Marine Component...

U.S. Coast Guard, Navy Helicopter Squadron execute critical medical evacuation of Filipino mariner northwest of Guam
In a display of interagency cooperation, a commercial mariner in urgent need of medical care was safely evacuated from a vessel 100 nautical miles offshore to Guam on March 2, 2024, thanks to the actions of the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Navy's Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 25 (HSC-25). Responders initiated the operation after a 26-year-old Filipino mariner aboard the 850-foot Liberian-flagged container ship Carmell 1, initially located 400 nautical miles northwest of Guam, reportedly exhibited severe abdominal issues. (U.S. Navy photo)
March 4, 2024 - In a display of interagency cooperation, a commercial mariner in urgent need of medical care was safely evacuated from his vessel 100 nautical miles offshore to Guam on March 2, 2024, thanks to the actions of the U.S. Coast...

Statement from President Biden on Addressing National Security Risks to the U.S. Auto Industry
March 1, 2024 - American automakers and auto workers are the best in the world. The iconic Big Three and American auto workers are leading the world in quality and innovation. A dynamic auto industry is vital to the U.S. economy...

Lancer Brigade takes part in Exercise Cobra Gold 2024
March 1, 2024 - Hundreds of soldiers from the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team “Lancer Brigade,” 7th Infantry Division, arrived in the Kingdom of Thailand to participate in the 43rd iteration of Exercise Cobra Gold 2024...