Red Flag-Alaska concluded in late June 2025 after two weeks of multinational flight operations over the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, the largest combat training range in the world. The Pacific Air Forces-directed exercise brought together more than 1,500 service members and more than 70 aircraft from Belgium, Japan, South Korea and the United States in a high intensity combat scenario designed to sharpen warfighting skills and strengthen regional deterrence.
Hosted at Eielson Air Force Base with primary support from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, the exercise featured defensive counter-air, close air support and dynamic targeting missions flown in contested and degraded environments.
Red Flag-Alaska celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2025, commemorating a legacy of coalition airpower training. Planners said it remains vital for honing interoperability, with staff officers from each nation collaborating on mission planning, debriefs and intelligence exploitation. Data links streamed near-real-time sensor feeds to multinational ground stations, where analysts converted imagery into actionable intelligence.
Participants included F-15J Eagle pilots from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, KF-16 Fighting Falcon crews from the Republic of Korea Air Force and Belgian special operations forces. Their presence underscored evolving alliances and a shared commitment to maintaining stability in the Indo-Pacific. A U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker from the Alabama Air National Guard refueled fighters from all four nations, highlighting how aerial refueling is practiced under simulated combat stress.
Aircrews and support personnel practiced expeditionary operations from simulated forward operating bases, integrating fifth-generation fighters such as the F-35 Lightning II alongside legacy platforms. The vast range allowed planners to replicate surface-to-air and air-to-air threats while providing enough airspace for large-force maneuvers.
“Red Flag-Alaska 25-2 is principally about the key integration of our Partners and Allies into our joint force,” said U.S. Air Force Col. Derrick Franck, the exercise’s deployed forces commander. “We are here to train in peace time with our Korean and Japanese [Allies] and accomplish training objectives that show the dominance of air power in the 21st century.”
International partnerships play a key role in deterrence by signaling unified resolve to adversaries. The joint training ensures that Allies can synchronize command-and-control procedures under pressure. Security analysts say such visible demonstrations of combined readiness help prevent conflict.