Ronald Reagan Strike Group Conducts Air Defense Exercise

August 21, 2018

US Navy:

PHILIPPINE SEA – The Ronald Reagan Strike Group, including Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5 and the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54), participated in an air defense exercise (ADEX) while underway in the Philippine Sea, August 16.

The ADEX was organized and planned by crewmembers aboard Antietam, the Air Defense Commander for the Ronald Reagan Strike Group and Commander, Task Force (CTF) 70 staff.

“Air Defense Exercises are the foundation from which we build our defense” said Capt. George Kessler, Commanding Officer of USS Antietam. “The ADEX we ran is one in a series that improves our ability to defend the force and maintain the strike group’s ability to operate wherever international law allows.”

The ADEX was designed to bring together maritime forces and build proficiency at complex task requirements with in depth cooperation across the strike group. The focus was to ensure maximum number of strike group warfare commanders were participating in order to identify scenes that expand on unit level training.

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