U.S., Thailand, Singapore forces to participate in exercise

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HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii (AFNS) --  Servicemembers from the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps, Royal Thai air force and army, and Royal Singapore air force are scheduled to participate in Exercise Cope Tiger 2009 March 9 through 20 in Thailand.

Cope Tiger is the only multilateral combined/joint field training and command post exercise held in Thailand, and takes place at both Korat and Udon Thani Royal Thai air force bases.

More than 2,300 people will participate in the exercise, including approximately 1,200 U.S. servicemembers and 1,100 servicemembers from Thailand and Singapore forces. The exercise will include 156 aircraft and air defense units, 55 of which are from the United States.

U.S. aircraft participating in Cope Tiger 2009 include the A-10 Thunderbolt II, E-2 Hawkeye, E-3B Sentry, KC-135 Stratotanker, K/C-130 Hercules, C-17 Globemaster III, F-15 Eagle, F/A-18 Hornet and the F/A-18 Super Hornet.

Participating U.S. Air Force units include the 44th Fighter Squadron, 909th Air Refueling Squadron and the 961st Airborne Air Control Squadron from Kadena Air Base, Japan; the 517th Airlift Squadron and 962nd Airborne Air Control Squadron from Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska; the 25th Fighter Squadron and 51st Fighter Wing from Osan AB, South Korea; the 36th Airlift Squadron from Yokota AB, Japan; the 535th Airlift Squadron from Hickam AFB, Hawaii; and the 203rd Air Refueling Squadron from Hickam AFB.

Cope Tiger includes a humanitarian/civic assistance program. Cope Tiger enhances combined readiness and interoperability, reinforces U.S. commitment to the Pacific, and demonstrates U.S. capability to project combined and joint forces strategically in a multilateral environment.