Photography by Rick Llinares
Out at Nellis AFB, Nev., the 64th and 65th Aggressor Squadrons
carry on a proud tradition.
The New
Aggressors
The New
Aggressors
AIR FORCE Magazine / January 2007
52
Aggressor aircraft form up in a four-ship display. Left to right: F-15
flown by Maj. Eric Hassinger, F-16 flown by Maj. Derek Routt, F-15
flown by Maj. Phil Stodick, and F-16 flown by Lt. Col. Paul Huffman.
The New
Aggressors
The New
Aggressors
AIR FORCE Magazine / January 2007
53
AIR FORCE Magazine / January 2007
54
N
ellis is the “Home of the Fighter Pilot.”
It’s also the home of the USAF Warfare
Center, with five wings and some 150 aircraft.
Aggressors play a key role in USAF fighter
training, acting as a realistic opposing force
by using adversary tactics, techniques, and
procedures. One year ago, USAF reactivated
the 65th Aggressor Squadron, as an F-15
unit, to team up with the 64th AGRS, an F-
16 unit. Both are part of the 57th Adversary
Tactics Group.
Right: Aggressor aircraft line the Nellis
ramp. Out in Nevada, the flying is good,
with clear weather and mostly empty
airspace.
Below: An F-16 of the 64th AGRS sports a
special lizard camouflage, one of several
exotic paint schemes found on the Ag-
gressors. At the controls is Lt. Col. Paul
Huffman.
Above: Airman Timothy Molleo assists as a 65th
AGRS F-15 starts engines and undergoes a
preflight examination. The desert heat is stultify-
ing; both Aggressor squadrons use protective
canopies to protect the airmen and aircraft from
the sun.
Left: An Aggressor F-15 (foreground) and F-16
display the “Flanker Blue” paint scheme seen
on both types of fighters in both units. In size
and shape, the F-15 is somewhat similar to
Russia’s superb fourth generation Su-27 Flanker.
The compact F-16’s size, power, and extreme
maneuverability make it a good representative of
smaller aircraft such as the MiG-29.
AIR FORCE Magazine / January 2007
55
Counterclockwise, from left: The F-16
(foreground) and F-15 aircraft vary greatly
in size and capability and therefore in
their ability to simulate certain maneuvers.
During training engagements, the Aggres-
sor aircraft use in-flight call signs such as
MiG, Ivan, and Flanker. ● A sun-washed
F-15 Aggressor aircraft awaits its call
to action. ● In a USAF Weapons School
training enagement, F-15s flown by Maj.
Phil Stodick (foreground) and Maj. Eric
Hassinger turn into the fight. ● A KC-135
tanker aircraft of the Ohio Air National
Guard prepares to gas up a Flanker Blue
F-15. The Aggressor squadrons borrow
tankers for their training exercises.
AIR FORCE Magazine / January 2007
56
Right: One of the F-15s assigned to
the Aggressors is in line for the day’s
action. The F-15 entered service in the
mid-1970s, replacing the F-4 Phantom
II. Though it has been around for three
decades, the old warhorse will keep going
on for years, not only in Aggressor units
but also in active and ANG squadrons.
Below: An F-15 in desert camouflage
paint scheme gets airborne.
Above: SrA. Chris Bennett (c) and A1C Alex
Bower (r) assist Lt. Col. Greg Franklin in
preflighting an Aggressor F-15.
Far left: The 65th AGRS received a first
batch of a dozen F-15s and is expected to
acquire another 12, making a full squadron’s
worth of Eagles. The unit first stood up at
Nellis in 1975, flying the F-5E. It was later
deactivated but was brought back last year.
Left: The presence of several F-16s with
dramatically different paint schemes, such
as these, are a common sight at Nellis.
AIR FORCE Magazine / January 2007
57
Aggressor pilots are highly experienced,
having at least 600 hours in the F-15 or
F-16 and with backgrounds as instructor
pilots. Aspiring Aggressors must work
through a formal syllabus of 23 sorties
and classroom training. The goal: pilots
who can offer academic and airborne in-
struction on adversary tactics. Aggressor
pilots continue their education at Nellis,
often devoting more than 100 hours of
research time to a single “threat” topic.
Clockwise, from right: F-15s of the 65th
AGRS head to “the fight.” ● Lt. Col. Larry
Bruce, commander of the 65th, saddles
up his F-15. ● An in-trail formation of Ag-
gressor F-15s thunders over “The Farms,”
a unique section of the Nellis ranges. ● An
Aggressor F-15 moves out.
AIR FORCE Magazine / January 2007
58
Clockwise, from right: F-15s such as this
one are filling out the 65th AGRS, now go-
ing into its second operational year since
reactivation. ● Maj. Derek Routt looks up
from the cockpit of his F-16 Viper as it
takes on fuel from a KC-135 overhead. ●
This view of Aggressor F-15s definitely is
not what “Blue Force” pilots want to see in
the rearview mirror. ● An Aggressor F-15
(top) and F-16 complement each other.
Pilots say the F-15 excels at high altitude,
whereas the F-16 has the edge down low.
AIR FORCE Magazine / January 2007
59
The US Air Force created its first Aggres-
sor squadrons in the 1970s, a result of
disappointing air warfare results in the
Vietnam War. The idea was to give novice
pilots the kind of real-world experience
that, in the past, could be gained only in
actual—and deadly—combat. The move
brought immediate and positive results.
Right: A four-ship of Aggressor F-15s
and F-16s prepare to mix it up with “Blue
Force” fighters.
Below: With Sunrise Mountain in the
background, Lt. Col. Greg Marzolf (in fore-
ground F-16) and Lt. Col. Patrick Wech
(partially hidden in rear F-16) hold short
of the active runway for final checks.
Above: Airman Timothy Molleo assists
Squadron Leader Stephen Chappell in
strapping into his F-15. Chappell is an Aus-
tralian exchange pilot serving with the 65th
AGRS as chief of weapons.
Left: Lt. Col. Craig Jones taxies his F-15
out to the active runway for a late afternoon
flight, to be followed by the F-15 in the
background.
Dedicated “Red Air” assets have proved
their worth time and again at Red Flag exer-
cises. Together, the 64th and 65th will create
even better opportunities for Air Force pilots
to train for combat. ■
