ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- With Exercise Cope North having ended, Marines, Sailors, airmen and members of the Japan Air Self Defense Force gathered together to celebrate a job well done.
The exercise allowed members of U.S. forces to join with Japanese forces to fly together in the common defense of Japan.
"It's a good opportunity to be able to fly with everyone who was down here," said Cmdr. Charles Drummond, Navy Electronic Attack Squadron 128 commanding officer. "It's good training and allows our airmen, along with our pilots, to work with other services."
Other commanders felt the same way about the exercise and the training that was achieved through the joint operations.
"I think it's huge that we are a part of this," said Lt. Col. Gary Graham, Marine All Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 224 commanding officer. "For us to be a part of this is big. We're all really eager to learn. All the people here are real professionals. It's really good to see different aircraft. Just because you have better technology does not always mean you will carry the day. A guy who is a good pilot flying an older plane can sometimes surprise you."
The joint operations allowed U.S. and Japanese forces to fly with and against each other in training for the joint defense of Japan. A mix of fighter and attack jets with radar jamming capability as well as a command element in the sky made this training realistic to what would be seen in real-world operations.
The two-week exercise consisted of two hour-long sorties per day with multiple aircraft facing off against multiple aircraft.
After all the flying was done more than 300 service members gathered at the Oceanview Club here to exchange plaques and meet the other members of the exercise. After dinner was served several members of JASDF entertained the crowd with traditional Okinawan songs and dance.
"It was very interesting and very unique," said Lt. Bryan Roskos, Navy Electronic Attack Squadron 128, personnel officer. "It was the first time I had seen anything like it outside of movies. It was very precise and intricate."
Even though the party happened while work still needed to be done, all involved were given the chance to come together and celebrate a job well done.
"Right now we are in the middle of packing up and there is still work to be done but we always encourage our Marines to get out and socialize to see how the other services do business," said Graham.
The only negative aspect of the exercise, as voiced by all the commanding officers involved, was trying to do an air exercise in Guam in the middle of the rainy season.
"Flying here reminded us that you have to be prepared to fly in all different weather," said Graham.
"It was a great exercise and we are almost done with our (six-month Unit Deployment Program)," said Graham. "With the holidays approaching and the heightened anticipation, our Marines need to stay focused. They need to remember that we still have some work to do before going back to South Carolina."
"I am proud of our Marines and the way they performed. We put our airplanes up on schedule and we learned a lot. This is a continuing part in our expeditionary nature. We came here from a base that is not our home base and then we'll leave again. That itself is a part of our training here."