Units from across the country โ€” including Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft โ€” will be visiting Davis-Monthan Air Force Base through the month of May into early June, base officials said.

  • Two E-3 Sentry airborne early warning and control (AWACS) planes from the 964th and 965th Airborne Air Control Squadrons at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, were due to arrive May 11 and will train here until May 25. Eight of Tinkerโ€™s AWACS visited D-M in 2015 to avoid tornadoes near their home base.
  • Six MV-22s from Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 165 at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California, will arrive May 16 and train here until May 25.
  • Fifteen A-10 Thunderbolt II teams from around the world will take part in the ninth biennial bombing, missile and tactical gunnery competition known as Hawgsmoke, from June 1-3.

The visiting A-10s will be hosted by the D-M-based Air Force Reserve 47th Fighter Squadron, which finished in first place in the 2014 Hawgsmoke competition to earn the honor of hosting the 2016 competition.

During the training visits, air crews will follow all D-M arrival and departure processes and adhere to noise abatement procedures, D-M said.


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