Italian G-550 + NATO E-3 + RCAF CF-188 Hornets - Exercise Cobra Warrior Sep 2023 at RAF Waddington 😎

On the first day of the second Cobra Warrior exercise in 2023, I made my first visit to RAF Waddington to try and capture some of the Royal Canadian Airforce (RCAF) CF-188 Hornets :)

The sequence starts with a short video of Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare) Gulfstream E-550A MM62303 14/12 c/s IAM1496 departing on runway 20. Although I had got there nice and early at 9.30, I almost missed this one - just time to scamper up to the hedge which was so tall I had to regroup and stand a few yards back on higher ground, hence the head shots 😂;)

About half an hour after my arrival, one of the two Boeing E-3A Sentries LX-N90454 parked on the west side of the airfield began to taxi for take off. It made a fine sight as it lifted gracefully into the air. The E-3 (AWACS) are becoming rare visitors at Waddington now.

And then, I didn’t have long to wait before some Hornet action, courtesy of the RCAF, as barely 10 minutes after the E-3 had graced the skies, the F-18s approached down the taxiway from one of the southern parking bays. Four aircraft as per usual in the complement, the last in special colours, albeit all-over grey!

The F-18s that day were 188757, 188730, 188782 and special-liveried demo aircraft 188735.

After a brief pause at the holding area, they taxied off to the runway and departed one at a time, not making quite as much noise as the Indian Mirages earlier in the year, but still making a fine sight 😎:)

The aircraft had been taking part in Exercise Cobra Warrior - a biannual exercise run by the Royal Air Force designed to exercise participants in high intensity large force tactical training.

2023's second exercise took place at RAF Waddington, RAF Mildenhall (USAF) and RAF Lakenheath (USAF) between the 4th & 22nd September.
The aircraft based at Waddington were as follows:

🇨🇦 Royal Canadian Air Force (Aviation Royale Canadienne) 🇨🇦
7x CF-188 3 Wing - 425/433 Squadrons
CanForce 0851 flight
188735 (2021 Demo Jet scheme)
188774 425 sqn
188757 425 sqn

CanForce 0854 flight
188782 433 sqn
188742 425 sqn
188736 401 sqn ('Swift Death' - YO X on tail)
188730 433 sqn

NATO
Boeing E-3A Sentry (AWACS) - based at Geilenkirchen, Germany
LX-N90443 (NATO 22)
LX-N90454 (NATO 21)

Italian Air Force
Gulfstream E-550A
MM62303 / 14-12

The RCAF have operated the McDonnell Douglas CF-188 Hornet since 1982, with 138 aircraft originally delivered. They are due to be phased out starting in 2026, being replaced with Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightnings.

Further new compilations from Exercise Cobra Warrior exercises, involving Saudi F-15 Eagles and Polish F-16s to follow soon 😎 :)