For many years, Canada has taken part in Exercise Air Warrior II, a realistic training opportunity encompassing scenarios where aircrews and ground forces work together. The exercise is held at the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) in Little Rock, Arkansas. This year was no exception, but for the first time another organization was present with a focus on interoperability.
Indeed, Canadian crew members and ones from the United States of America were joined by a new group of colleagues, the Air and Space Interoperability Council (ASIC), to tackle several issues that must be considered when working as a member of a coalition force. ASIC, an international organization whose principal objective is to ensure member nations are able to fight side-by-side as airmen and airwomen in joint and combined operations, comprises five countries including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. This organization was formed in 1948 and has since been actively developing projects and working on issues to facilitate cooperation in times of conflict.
Major James McPhee, the ASIC head of the Canadian delegation, explained that in a world where battles and wars can no longer be fought in isolation, ASIC`s member nations need to ensure that they can be interoperable.