The Hindu : Indo-U.S. military exercises begin

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Oct 04, 2002

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Indo-U.S. military exercises begin

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI OCT. 3. Indian soldiers and airmen who landed in Alaska on September 30 have begun their platoon-level joint training exercise with their American counterparts at Fort Richardson and Elmendorf Air Force base.

`Geronimo Thrust 02' is the first exercise of its kind involving Indian troops and airmen on American soil. It is designed to familiarise the military personnel with some U.S. training techniques and equipment as well as give U.S. soldiers the opportunity to interact with soldiers and airmen from India, according to a statement from the U.S. Embassy here.

Sponsored by the U.S. Pacific Command, this exercise will involve Indian soldiers training with soldiers from the U.S. army. The Indian forces include a platoon of 32 soldiers plus 10 pathfinders and eight senior Army and Air Force observers. IAF personnel and aircraft include 35 personnel and one IL-76 aircraft. The exercise features a training phase, an airborne mission, a manoeuvre portion and a foot march.

The exercise will consist of several phases. During the training portion, forces will conduct ground training and equipment familiarisation and day and night jumps. Forces will also conduct an air-borne mission in which Indian pathfinders and scouts jump with U.S. scouts, Indian squads jump in U.S. platoons and some Indians jump from the IL-76. The Indian personnel, who flew to Alaska in their own aircraft, will conduct training and manoeuvre using their own and U.S. aircraft and equipment. They will return to India around October 11.

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