NORTHERN UTAH — Hill Air Force Base is warning their neighbors about an expected increase in air traffic for much of the month of August.
According to a press release from the base, several fighter wings will be conducting air-to-ground weapons exercises known as “Combat Hammer” and air-to-air exercises known as “Combat Archer” between August 6 and August 24.
Local residents may notice an increase in take offs and departures as well as aircraft flying during the night hours as pilots sharpen their skills. The base says on days when night flying occurs, the operations are scheduled to end around 10 p.m.
“The goal of Combat Hammer is to evaluate the effectiveness, maintainability, suitability, and accuracy of precision guided air-to-ground munitions,” the release states. “Combat Archer evaluates air-to-air weapons systems in live-fire, combat-like environments to improve training, readiness, and effectiveness.”
During the operations, aircraft will travel to the Utah Test and Training range in the west desert, where they will drop munitions in simulated combat scenarios.
The operations will include F-35As from Hill Air Force Base, F-15s from Mountain Home AFB in Idaho and F-16s from Homestead Air Reserve Base in Florida and from Nellis AFB in Nevada.
