Eight F-22 pilots and twenty maintainers from the 477th Fighter Group, the Air Force Reserve Command associate unit at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, deployed in late January to support US Pacific Command’s Theater Security Package program in the Western Pacific. The 477th FG personnel deployed to Kadena AB, Japan, along with their active duty counterparts from the 535th Fighter Squadron. The deployment to the base on the island of Okinawa ran for three months. Deploying to Kadena allows the active duty and Reserve pilots and maintainers to generate sorties without having to fly in the harsh Alaska winter weather. The deployment also allows pilots and maintainers to train with other types of aircraft. This is the fourth Theater Security deployment for the 477th FG.
