Altus Air Force Base soars during annual formation exercise

ALTUS, Okla. (KSWO) - Altus Air Force Base took to the skies Friday morning as part of its annual large-scale formation exercise.

Well, not the whole base. Close to 25 planes practiced transporting the base’s assets during the operation, taxiing down the runway and taking off in close succession.

“It gives us the ability in the event of severe weather that we can generate as quickly as possible, and we can get that capability and protect our assets by flying them somewhere else and bringing them back,” said Col. Blaine Baker, Commander of the 97th Air Mobility Wing.

While the exercise is meant to showcase preparation and ability, it also allowed the base to conduct realistic training for aircraft like the C-17, KC-135 and KC-46.

“We trained 70% of the entire Mobility Air Force right here at Altus Air Force Base,” said Col. Baker. “So any day that we can generate all the available combat power, disperse that across our region and train and recover it is a huge success. And it drives further readiness and further preparedness for us.”

When the training was completed, pilots and airmen returned to base for a debriefing.

“We’re very thankful for the team. We’re very proud of the team. There is no doubt that we are forging the world’s most inspired, proficient, and adaptive mobility warriors. As always, we appreciate the community partnership that helps us execute this mission,” Col. Baker said. “We do everything in lockstep with our fantastic community, and we’re really proud of the relationship there as well too, as our airmen go out and execute and deliver airpower for America.”

Copyright 2023 KSWO. All rights reserved.