YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan -- Team Yokota deployed 69 Airmen and two C-130J Super Hercules aircraft to exercise Cope India 2023, a Pacific Air Forces training exercise conducted with the Indian Air Force (IAF) at Air Force Station Arjan Singh, India, April 10-21.
Members of the 374th Airlift Wing traveled to India to join a team made up of more than 250 Airmen and 10 aircraft from installations across the Indo-Pacific theater. Sponsored by Pacific Air Forces, the 11-day event is held in partnership with the Indian Air Force and is focused on honing critical skills, strengthening relationships, and exchanging knowledge.
“Working together and sharing best practices helps us develop mutual understanding so that we can cooperate more efficiently in the future,” said Lt. Col. Kira Coffey, 36th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron (EAS) commander and the Cope India 2023 deployed mobility forces commander at Air Force Station Arjan Singh, one of 3 bases where the exercise is taking place. “It's a test of how much we can achieve together as partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region and showcases our collective determination to do so.”
Yokota members from the 374th Operations Group, 374th Maintenance Group, and the 374th Mission Support Group worked with the IAF to conduct critical familiarization on Low-Cost Low-Altitude (LCLA) rigging and airdrop techniques, aircraft field maintenance events, and airfield security drills.
Additionally, participating members conducted air superiority operations with IAF counterparts to increase force compatibility and to exchange best practices for formation and low-level flying, reduced distance landing operations, personnel airdrops, LCLA airdrops, and mass-container airdrops.
“Cope India was an amazing opportunity and an honor for us,” said Capt. Joselin Maskill, 36th AS C-130J instructor pilot and 36 EAS Mission Commander for Cope India 2023. “We exercised different flying operations while conducting skill exchange events to strengthen our combat readiness with our Indian Air Force partners. From planning missions to flying tactical sorties for formation airdrops with the Indian C-130Js, we worked alongside each other committedly.”
Yokota participants agreed that working together builds collective strength through partnership, with Cope India 2023 as a prime example of the capabilities cooperative forces can achieve.
Cope India began in 2004 and has since evolved to incorporate subject matter expert exchanges, air mobility training, airdrop training, and large-force exercises.