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    Luftwaffe planes visited Australia for the first time

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    For the first time in history, the German Luftwaffe sent a team of aircraft to Australia. As part of the Rapid Pacific 2022 mission, the German air force demonstrated the ability to deploy forces to the other side of the globe within twenty-four hours. The plans assume a several-week stay in the Pacific and visits to Japan and South Korea.

    Luftwaffe Commander Generalleutnant Ingo Gerhartz announced earlier last year that planes would be dispatched to Australia to demonstrate its own power projection and deterrence capabilities. Plans were systematically taking shape and at the same time becoming more and more ambitious. Initially, there was talk of the participation of several Eurofighter Typhoon fighters in the company of one or two flying tanks. Ultimately, there are six Eurofighters, four A400M transporters and three A330MRTT flying tanks participating in Rapid Pacific 2022. The team of aviators and accompanying ground handling technicians consists of a total of 250 people.

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    The escapade to the Indo-Pacific region is interesting for lovers of occasional painting of military planes. The Luftwaffe is known for its dizzying achievements in this field and also this time it did not disappoint. Named for the occasion, the Air Ambassador Eurofighter has the flags of Germany, Singapore, Australia, Japan and South Korea painted on the wings and on the fuselage.

    The planes belonging to the 74th Fighter Wing took off from the base in Neuburg an der Donau in Bavaria on August 15. The assumed goal of the first stage of the mission was achieved – in less than twenty-four hours, the team traveled over 10,000 kilometers and reached Singapore. On August 18, the Germans arrived in Darwin, Australia. Such distant missions are alien to the Luftwaffe, but there was only one incident during the flight. During a stopover at the Az-Zafra base near Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, one of the Eurofighters – the Air Ambassador – suffered a hydraulic failure. Along with the unlucky fighter, there was still one A400M securing operations.

    Despite the chronic problems with combat readiness, the German air force managed to send spare parts by air to Az-Zafra on August 17. The repairs went quickly and the next day both planes reached Singapore, and landed in Darwin on the night of August 19, just in time for the first day of Pitch Black exercises.

    The Pitch Black is the largest biennial aviation exercise in the Southern Hemisphere, covering air combat, ground attacks and self-defense. This year’s edition is exceptional for several reasons. Almost 2,500 soldiers and about a hundred airplanes from sixteen countries take part in “Pitch Black”. Permanent participants are the Anglo-Saxon states: Australia, Great Britain, the United States, Canada and New Zealand. The countries of the region also regularly host: Singapore, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and even the United Arab Emirates. This year, Japan and South Korea have joined for the first time in addition to Germany.

    Interesting is the presence of another regular participant – France. The participation of Armée de l’air et de l’espace in this year’s edition of “Pitch Black” was of course planned for a long time, but due to the events around Taiwan, the expedition to the Pacific was accelerated. On August 10, Operation Pégase 22 was launched, and within seventy-two hours from the metropolis to New Caledonia, 16,600 kilometers, three Rafale fighters, two A330MRT air tankers and two A400M transporters were deployed. French planes made a stopover in India, where they conducted exercises with Indian aviation.

    The “Pitch Black” exercises will last until September 9, but will not mean the end of “Rapid Pacific 2022”. Immediately afterwards, the Luftwaffe will participate in the “Kakadu” exercises organized by the Royal Australian Navy, scheduled for September 12-26. This year’s edition will be the largest ever, with nineteen ships, thirty-four planes and over 3,000 military personnel from twenty-five countries. The tasks of German aircraft are to provide air cover to the naval forces.

    After over a month of intensive stay in Australia, the Luftwaffe team is to go to another exercise, this time with the Singapore aviation. Subsequently, dedicated teams are to visit Japan and South Korea. An important element of the entire long escapade will be intensive refueling exercises in flight. The team is to carry out a total of over 200 such operations.

    But why?

    The question is, of course, why send the German air force to the other side of the world. Australia, India and Japan have long pressured Berlin to make a symbolic commitment to the Indo-Pacific region in the face of China’s growing aggressiveness. When announcing the plans for such a far-reaching expedition, General Gerhartz pointed to the obligations towards NATO as a pillar of national security and stressed that the challenge for the Pact is not only to reorient itself towards defense against an equal enemy, but also to respond proportionally to opponents who test the security of the Alliance’s states in many areas. The Luftwaffe commander mentioned the freedom of access and use of air and space as particularly important for NATO.

    Former Marine Commander Admiral Andreas Krause is a vocal supporter of military engagement in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. He was the originator of the Bayern frigate’s voyage to Japan last fall. Also in the German strategy for the Indo-Pacific published in 2020, Berlin recognized the need for greater involvement in the region, although the document tried not to offend either China or the United States. The question is, how long will Germany be able to manage this balancing act and focus on economic benefits?

    German fighters at RAAF Base Darwin.
    (Department of Defense, LACW Emma Schwenke)

    The Bayern frigate’s voyage had already angered Beijing, which refused to admit the frigate to Shanghai. However, the ship crossed the South China Sea, and although it avoided the disputed areas, this did not save it from confronting Chinese naval militias. This raises the obvious question of the flight path of Luftwaffe planes from Singapore to Japan and Korea. Of course, the shortest leads over the South China Sea. General Gerhartz, pressed on this issue, replied that the planes would use civilian air corridors and would “barely touch the South China Sea.” He also denied that there were any plans to fly over the Taiwan Strait.

    The current German government places great emphasis on the issue of human rights in its foreign policy, which puts it on a collision course with Beijing. The trip of Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Asia in April this year provided a theme for many reflections and speculations. The head of the German government, Scholz, was the first to bypass China in a quarter of a century. Worse, from a Chinese point of view, he traveled to Tokyo, where he supported Japan in opposing “unilateral attempts to forcefully change the status quo in the South and East China Seas.” Together with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, he also announced deepening cooperation in the field of security.

    Berlin’s behavior in the case of the war in Ukraine, which does not meet its allies’ expectations, has seriously doubted Germany’s behavior in the event of the Chinese invasion of Taiwan. The fears are all the more justified because, as a recent report by the German Economic Institute shows, the country’s economic dependence on China continues to deepen. Despite repeated warnings from research centers and industry organizations, large corporations such as Volkswagen and BASF are carelessly investing more and more in China, as if this did not carry the slightest political risk or helped in the development of Chinese competition.

    See also: New types, new opportunities – Taigei and Mogami began their service in Kaijō Jieitai

    Bundesheer Fotos, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic

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