Soldiers of the U.S. Army’s 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade set up a fast rope system on a UH-60 Black Hawk during the Freedom Flag exercise at Camp Humphreys, South Korea, April 21, 2026. (Jessica Mun/U.S. Air Force)
KUNSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — A Florida-based air wing this year led the U.S. side of Freedom Flag, a biannual air power exercise with South Korea, and employed a relatively new deployed combat wing concept, according to the Air Force.
The 31st Air Expeditionary Wing, based at Hurlburt Field, Fla., operated for the first time as a complete, deployable command and control and air base unit during the exercise from April 10 to 24, according to an Air Combat Command news release Thursday.
The wing employed a “modular, scalable unit of action for the first time,” the release states.
Airmen of the 31st Combat Air Base Squadron refuel a KC-135 Stratotanker during the Freedom Flag exercise at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, on April 16, 2026 (Yoojin Lee/Stars and Stripes)
More than 30 U.S. and South Korean units planned and executed over 500 sorties, according to the command. The exercise also took place at Gwangju Air Base, according to the Air Force.
The Air Force designates combat wings to deploy as cohesive, warfighting units, rather than assembling individuals from multiple units, according to an Air Force fact sheet.
For Freedom Flag, the 31st Air Task Force was designated the 31st Air Expeditionary Wing to fill that role, according to Air Combat Command.
“Being able to team together, train together, and fight together as defined units of action is critical to delivering effective air and space power in combat operations,” according to the Air Force fact sheet.
The exercise focused on the tactical execution of combat missions and strengthening military readiness, Lt. Col. Joshua Pratt, commander of the 31st Combat Air Base Squadron, said in an interview April 16 at Kunsan Air Base.
The exercise this year allowed his squadron to demonstrate its ability to provide air base sustainment and support the flying units in the exercise, he said.
The squadron supports agile combat employment and maneuver for air operations, Pratt said. Agile combat employment, in part, calls for dispersing U.S. air power to scattered airfields in the event of an attack.
Pratt stressed that Freedom Flag was a great opportunity to cross-train with the South Korean air force, on the ground and in the air.
“Freedom Flag integrates U.S. and South Korean forces to train against surface-to-air and air-to-air threats, ensuring neutral understanding and trust between the two nations,” Pratt said.
He underlined the importance of realistic training for stronger combined forces.
All the participating units had the opportunity to plan, execute and debrief the air operations jointly, an important takeaway, Pratt said.
“Our training is paying off every day while we participate in this exercise,” Pratt said.
Separately, tactical air control party operators from the 604th Air Support Operations Squadron conducted fast rope insertion and extraction training as part of Freedom Flag at Camp Humphreys on April 21, according to the 51st Fighter Wing news release May 4.
The operators used advanced communication waveforms to relay data to the 607th Air Operations Center while maneuvering through mountainous terrain during a six-day training, according to the release.
