Summary and Key Points: The United States Air Force's F-22A Raptor captured attention at the largest-ever Exercise Pitch Black in Australia, featuring aircraft from 21 nations.
-Held from July 12 to August 2, the exercise included a public day attended by 30,000 visitors, with the F-22A Raptor as the highlight. Lt. Col. Ty Bridge emphasized the Raptor's role in showcasing air dominance and enhancing international partnerships.
-The event also marked the first participation of the Italian Navy's flagship Cavour and included drills with South Korean F-15K and Indian Su-30MKI jets. Operations were briefly halted due to an Italian Eurofighter Typhoon crash but quickly resumed.
Earlier this month, as the largest-ever modern airpower exercise in Australia began; it was arguably a United States Air Force fighter that stole the show. This year's Exercise Pitch Black drew aircraft from 21 nations around the world to Queensland and the Northern Territory, and included a public day on July 20 at Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Darwin.
The event's public opening was attended by 30,000 visitors and featured around 30 different aircraft on display, while "the heart of the excitement" was the U.S. Air Force's Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor. Though a static display, it caught the attention of attendees, said the U.S. Pacific Air Forces.
"Being here at the RAAF Open Day is not just about showcasing the F-22's capabilities," explained U.S. Air Force F-22A Raptor pilot "Holster," who added, "It's about building relationships and demonstrating our commitment to our Allies and partners. Events like these help us strengthen our ties and enhance our ability to work together in the future.
Though the public day did allow visitors to see the F-22A Raptor up close, Exercise Pitch Black 24 – which kicked off on July 12 and runs until August 2 – also saw the fifth-generation stealth fighter take to the skies in numerous air-to-air exercises.
"Bringing the F-22 Raptor to Exercise Pitch Black is a powerful statement of our dedication to our Allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific region," said Lt. Col. Ty Bridge, Pacific Air Forces Exercise Pitch Black lead planner. "The Raptor's unmatched capabilities in air dominance make it an invaluable asset in any modern combat scenario."
Other aerial drills have included South Korean F-15K and Indian Su-30MKI fighter jets – with the two going head-to-head to promote greater interoperability between the two nation's air forces, while also allowing the pilots to gain experience with the other aircraft.
Exercise Pitch Black is hosted biennially by the RAAF, and held in the Northern Territory, and the multinational air combat exercise has steadily grown in size since it began in 1981, initially between different RAAF units. The 2020 exercise was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the 2022 exercise saw 17 participating countries.
This year's is the largest to date, with first-time participation with aircraft from Italy, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Spain, as well as personnel from Brunei and Fiji. For the first time, it also included an aircraft carrier in the exercises – the Italian Navy's flagship Cavour. The presence of the carrier at this year's exercise marked a significant milestone for Rome.
"This is the first time that Italy has joined Exercise Pitch Black and the first time an aircraft carrier has participated," said Captain Milos Argenton, commanding officer of the Cavour.
Argenton noted that though the flagship had previously been deployed across the Atlantic, visiting the United States last year and has made previous voyages to Africa, "this is the first time it has travelled into the Indo-Pacific region."
Flight operations were also briefly halted following the crash of an Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare) F-2000 Eurofighter Typhoon on Wednesday. The aircraft went down in the Douglas Daly region, southwest of Darwin – but the pilot was able to eject and was successfully rescued. According to reports, he was sent to the hospital for medical tests.
Though not planned, the incident served as an opportunity for other teams from the RAAF.
"It was a textbook recovery that was done by the search and rescue teams plus our airborne on-scene commanders from the Australian Air Force," RAAF Air Commodore Pete Robinson said on Thursday.
Flight operations have also resumed in the biennial military training event.
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.
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