United States | Operation Sovereign Sentinels

[Odinson]

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OPERATION SOVEREIGN SENTINELS​

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SECRET​

AIR FORCE DEPLOYMENT​

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AIR COMBAT COMMAND​

Squadron	Airbase	Aircraft	Pilots
100th Fighter Squadron	Langley AFB, Virginia	x4 F-22	4
101st Fighter Squadron	Langley AFB, Virginia	x2 F-15E	4
104th Fighter Squadron	Plattsburgh AFB, New York	x2 F-15C	2
200th Fighter Squadron	Hill AFB, Utah	x2 F-15C	2
202nd Fighter Squadron	Mountain Home AFB, Idaho	x2 F-15E	4
301st Fighter Squadron	Seymour Johnson AFB, North Carolina	x2 F-15E	4
302nd Fighter Squadron	Shaw AFB, South Carolina	x2 F-15C	2
303rd Fighter Squadron	Roosevelt Roads NS, Puerto Rico	x2 F-16C Block 50	2
400th Fighter Squadron	Cannon AFB, New Mexico	x2 F-15C	2
401st Fighter Squadron	Edwards AFB, California	x4 F-22	4
403rd Fighter Squadron	Kelly Field, Texas	x2 F-16C	2
404th Fighter Squadron	Groom Lake, Nevada	x2 F-15C	2
500th Fighter Squadron	Andersen AFB, Guam	x4 F-15E	8
501st Fighter Squadron	Eareckson AFB, Alaska	x4 F-15E	8
502nd Fighter Squadron	Eielson AFB, Alaska	x2 F-16C Block 50	2
503rd Fighter Squadron	Elmendorf AFB, Alaska	x2 F-15C	2
504th Fighter Squadron	Hickam AFB, Hawaii	x4 F-15C	4

DETAILS

F-22 Raptor - x1 Pilot; Fully Fueled + x2 600 gallon drop tanks; x1 20 mm M61A2 Vulcan rotary cannon, 480 rounds; Internal Weapons Bay: x6 AIM-120C/D AMRAAM; Full loadout of standard countermeasures.

F-15C Eagle - x1 Pilot; Fully Fueled + x3 600 gallon drop tanks; x1 20 mm M61A1 Vulcan 6-barrel rotary cannon, 512 rounds; x3 600 US gallons external drop tanks; x4 AIM-120 AMRAAM; x2 AGM-65 Maverick; Full loadout of standard countermeasures.

F-15E Strike Eagle - x2 Pilots; Fully Fueled + x3 600 gallon drop tanks; x1 20 mm M61A1 Vulcan 6-barreled rotary cannon, 500 rounds of PGU-28 ammunition; x8 AIM-120 AMRAAM; Full loadout of standard countermeasures.

F-16C Block 50 - x1 Pilot; Fully Fueled + x3 600 gallon drop tanks; x1 20 mm M61A1 Vulcan 6-barrel rotary cannon, 511 rounds, 500 rounds of PGU-28 ammunition; x6 AIM-120 AMRAAM; Full loadout of standard countermeasures.

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DEPLOYMENT ORDERS​

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CONTEXT​

The incident at the Diablo Canyon made it clear to the Pentagon, and the White House, that the United States needed to have a structured number of combat aircraft across the country to deal with unexpected incidents that required a rapid response. Therefore, the aircraft listed in this operation, and the associated number of pilots needed for those aircraft, were ready at all times to be scrambled for an incident. The aircraft were armed and fully fueled as listed above while the pilots were awake, fed, in uniform, and on-base in the event that they were scrambled. The pilots served eight-hour shifts and then they would switch out with other pilots. The aircraft themselves would be on standby for two days, and then they would be switched out for two other fighters - to prevent delays, the new aircraft would be prepared before the old aircraft were defueled and unarmed. The new aircraft would then have preflight checks done so that they would be ready to go in the event of a scramble.​

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