RAF deploys to Australia for joint venture with French Air and Space Force on Ex Pitch Black
In preparation for Exercise Pitch Black, the Royal Air Force will join members of the French Air and Space Force in Australia for joint training.
RAF Typhoons, a Voyager and an A400M have landed in Darwin, Australia, where the training venture will take place.
Commenting on the deployment, the Officer Commanding 11 Fighter Squadron, Wing Commander Robertson described the event as a 'new and challenging opportunity'.
Wing Commander Robertson said: "This is not the first time that 11(F) Sqn has conducted an exercise in the Indo-Pacific region, and last year the squadron exercised in Malaysia on Exercise Bersama Lima.
"Exercise Griffin Strike, however, provides a new and challenging opportunity to plan and execute air power projection to the Indo-Pac region, in partnership with our long-term allies in the French Air and Space Force.
"It is therefore a continuation and evolution of a longer-term training commitment that spans many years with the Anglo-French Combined Joint Expeditionary Force (CJEF).
"The exercise has demonstrated the ability of the CJEF to plan and conduct combined projection of Air Power at distance.
"It underlines the capability of both Air Forces to act together in an integrated manner to protect our interests and reassure allies whilst deterring potential aggressors."
The deployment phase of the exercise was conducted under Griffin Strike 24 which included six Typhoon aircraft and 11 Fighter Squadron with the Voyager and A400M aircraft.
This deployment is a significant period in the UK and French relationship as it marks the 120th anniversary of the Entente Cordiale.
Anglo-French Combined Joint Expeditionary Force was created after treaties between France and the UK were signed in 2010 and was designed to tackle shared threats.
This latest exercise will continue the long-term training commitment shared between the two nations with the CJEF.
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