US-Canadian exercise kicks off at Fort Bragg

by Adam Luther
440 AW/PA

2/28/2013 - POPE FIELD, N.C. -- Soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division, U.S. Air Force Airmen and the Royal Canadian Air Force are participating in the Joint Operational Access Exercise that began Feb. 25 at Fort Bragg, N.C. 

JOAX is a two-week exercise to prepare Air Force and Army service members to respond to worldwide crises and contingencies.

Three C-130J's, four C-130H's, and six C-17 Globemasters from the U.S. Air Force and a Royal Canadian Air Force C-130J and a C-177 are involved in the operation.  Thus far 1,459 paratroopers have performed static line jumps for JOAX with follow-up missions when they assemble on the ground. 

This combined exercise enables U.S. and Canadian mobility aircrews to train with paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division on projecting combat power in a hostile environment.