Gando Air Base in the Canary Island will held Ocean Sky 2021 (OS21), an air combat exercise organized each year by the Spanish Air Force. OS21 begins in October 19th and will last till October the 29th. OS21 is the biggest international air combat exercise organized by Spanish Air Force Air Combat Command (MACOM) and is part of the advanced training of the Spanish Air Force Fighter pilots and air combat controllers. During OS21 both pilots and air combat controllers have to face complex scenarios with dissimilar aircraft from Spain and other NATO nations.
This year OS21 will join EART (European Air Refuelling Training) that will be held during the same dates at Lanzarote (a nearby Island). The 2021 edition will start next 15 October and end on 29 October. It will be organised in combination with the Spanish fighter exercise “Ocean Sky”, operating from Gando airbase in Gran Canaria. Five tankers, an A330 MRTT from France, an A400M from Germany, a KC-767 from Italy, an A400M from Spain and an A330 MRTT from the Multinational MRTT Unit (MMU) will participate in EART 2021. 180 crews and mentors will meet during two weeks to become familiar with new scenarios, maintain proficiency, exchange information and build interoperability.
Participating in OS21 will be Spanish Air Force fighters from all combat units, Eurofighters EF2000 from 11th and 14th wings, EF-18M Upgraded Hornets from 12th and 15th Wings, and non-upgraded EF-18A Hornets from local unit 46th Wing. International participants are Greek Air Force F-16C Vipers and a NATO AWACS E-3 Sentry. Search and rescue for the duration of the exercise will be provided by Super Pumas and CN-235 VIGMA from 46th Wing.