The US Air Force, alongside five foreign allies, conducted a significant "elephant walk" at Andersen Air Force Base in the Indo-Pacific region last September, demonstrating force and solidarity against China's assertiveness.

The formation included 23 aircraft from the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, and France. The exercise was part of broader operations within the Indo-Pacific Command, such as Mobility Guardian, aiming to enhance readiness and interoperability.

-This show of force underscores the commitment of the US and its allies to maintaining stability and countering China's territorial ambitions in the region.

US and Allies Showcase Air Power in Indo-Pacific Elephant Walk

The US Air Force and five foreign allies recently staged an “elephant walk” deep within the Indo-Pacific region, clearly as a show of force and solidarity toward a revisionist China.

Hosted at Andersen Air Force Base in September of last year, the elephant walk featured a 23-plane formation, with jets from the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, and France.

What is An Elephant Walk? 

“Train together. Ready together. Stronger together. More than 15,000 US and Allies forces are enhancing #readiness and #interoperability throughout the @INDOPACOM,” PACAF tweeted. (Can you imagine Curtis LeMay using hashtag readiness?)

The USAF contributed five F-35 fighters, one B-52 bomber, two KC-135 tankers, two C-17 transports, and one C-130 transport to the elephant walk.

“On the other hand, the allied forces joined in with contributions from France, consisting of four Rafale fighters, one A400 Atlas transport aircraft, and one A330 MRTT; the United Kingdom provided one A400 Atlas; Canada contributed one C-130J and one CC-150T Polaris; Japan included one C-130H; and Australia participated with one C-130J,” 

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Bigger Picture

The Andersen elephant walk was one of many exercises, across the US Indo-Pacific Command area. One of the exercises is Mobility Guardian.

“Mobility Guardian, Air Mobility Command’s flagship exercise, focuses on honing the logistics and mobilization capabilities required for large-scale conflicts in the Pacific,” The Eurasian Times reported. Mobility Guardian “supports concurrent exercises led by Pacific Air Forces, such as Northern Edge, which has expanded to other regions of the Pacific from its usual location in Alaska, and Cope Thunder, a joint exercise involving the US and the Philippines.”

Mobility Guardian was conducted from July 5th to July 21, coinciding with a series of Bomber Task Force rotations thar brought the B-52 and B-1 bombers to air bases in Guam and Japan. Specifically, B-52 from the 20th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana and B-52s from Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota were deployed to Andersen in Guam. Meanwhile, two B-1s from Dyess Air Force Base in Texas were deployed to Misawa Air Base in Japan.

“At the time, Lt. Col. Andrew Marshall, the commander of the 345th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, said that the presence of the B-1 in Japan emphasizes the United States’ dedication to the Indo-Pacific region and its commitment to supporting Allies and partners in the area,” The Eurasian Times reported.

While deploying bombers to Guam is rather ordinary, deploying bombers to Misawa in Japan is unusual – and likely to grab China’s attention.

Tensions have been ramping up in the region as China continues to assert itself, make territorial claims, build man-made islands. The US elephant walk is most certainly a display tailored specifically for China. A way of indicating that the US still has considerable force projection. And a way to show that the US is not alone in the region. European powers, Asian powers, and Oceanic powers all have a vested interest in tempering China’s rise, and are willing to coordinate with the US to temper China’s rise.

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