[Portugal] Rapid Response Exercise

[Bruno]

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Rapid Response Exercise​

Context: It will serve to test the capability of the Portuguese Air Force to intercept, contact and remove intrusions into its airspace, one squadron will be part of this exercise, the 203 Squadron with five F-16C/D Block 50/52 Fighting Falcons. A incrusion will be detected near the north, where the F-16's will intercept it and try to prevent it from entering Portuguese Airspace. The Exercise is secret and classified.

Deployment:

5x F-16C/D Block 50/52 Fighting Falcon

2 x AIM-9B Sidewinder
4 x AIM-120D AMRAAM
2 x Fuel tanks 370L
All its avionic and systems
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[Bruno]

The exercise would be prepared however the pilots and the air base personnel wouldn't be informed of when it was supposed to start, only the high ranking officers would. This was to create a sense of genuine reaction from all personnel, meaning the exercise would be more effective.

So at around 7:38 the Radar Statiom N° 2, would pick up a foreign body coming from the northwest of the country, after some calculations, they would determine that its path was taking it towards the airspace. Its radar signature meant it was bigger than a fighter plane, probably a bomber. So, it would relay this information towards the Montijo Air Base where the 203s Squadron would be activated and quickly fueled and armed, they would be fully ready within fifteen minutes, a great time, they would still have plenty of it to intercept the unidentified aircraft.

Two of the F-16s would lift up safely from the air base and head towards the current location of the aircraft. Which wouldn't take much time to reach.

 

[Bruno]

The two F-16s would arrive to intercept the aircraft and relay the information taken from visual range to Radar Station Nº 2, it would be as previously mentioned a bomber. Being this an exercise, the bomber would be purely speculative. The F-16 would check with the Station to determine the distance to the Portuguese Air Space, the bomber would be 30 min away from reaching it, with a collision course.

The main pilot would begin a transmission to the foreign bomber, which would be role played by the Radar Station personnel.

"Unidentified aircraft, you are in a collision course with Portuguese Air Space without authorization, please identify yourself"

The aircraft would respond as being of a foreign non-friendly air force.

"This is FALCON-1 from the Portuguese Air Force, FACKER-1 you are in a collision course with our air space, please divert from your current course, as to avoid entering unauthorized air space. Thank you"

The aircraft would do as told, and divert a few degrees, making it so it would pass just a few kilometers from the Airspace, this in turn would worry the pilots.

"Thank you FACKER-1, we will continue to shadow you until you have left this region. Over."

The Pilots would continue to follow the Bomber, down to the South of Portugal, once their fuel reserves would start reach 25% capacity, two more F-16 from the same squadron and base, would take off in the same way as before, with the same armament and Fly in high altitude towards the bomber, in order to switch places and maintain a constant eye on the bomber.