F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters from carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70), U.S. Air Force and Republic of Korea Air Force carried out integration training on Thursday as part of the U.S.-South Korean Freedom Shield exercise. Meanwhile, Royal Australian Air Force P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft have wrapped up a regional presence deployment which saw the aircraft carry out surveillance missions over the South China Sea with one instance of harassment by Chinese fighter aircraft during a mission.
A U.S. Air Force release on Friday stated that an F-35C assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 97, integrated with two U.S. F-35As assigned to the 134th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron and two ROKAF F-35As assigned to the 17th Fighter Wing, carrying out integrated training as part of Freedom Shield 25 with the combined operation highlighting the capability of U.S. and South Korean forces to seamlessly integrate air, ground and maritime operations, reinforcing their enhanced combined defense posture.
VFA-97 “Warhawks” is part of Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 2, embarked on Carl Vinson. Before the joint training event, the ROKAF and USAF F-35As participated in dynamic targeting and aerial refueling training. A released image showed the F-35s conducting a flypast over Carl Vinson, currently operating around the Sea of Japan following its departure from Busan, South Korea on Mar.7 after wrapping up a five day port visit.
A Navy release on the exercise stated that the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group (CSG) currently consists of aircraft carrier Carl Vinson with embarked CVW-2, cruiser USS Princeton (CG-59), and missile destroyers USS Sterett (DDG-104) and USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114). Ralph Johnson is assigned to the Japan-based and forward deployed Destroyer Squadron 15 (DESRON15). Destroyer USS William P. Lawrence (DDG-110), which has been part of the CSG since it departed from the U.S. in November, is likely detached for independent operations.
In line with Freedom Shield 25, the U.S. Marine Corps and the Republic of Korea Marine Corps conducted the Korean Marine Exercise Program 25.1 from Mar. 3 to Wednesday. KMEP is a semi-annual exercise that provides iterative opportunities for Republic of Korea Marine Corps and U.S. Marine Corps units to train together. An ROKMC release stated that 440 U.S. Marines from a battalion (3rd Reconnaissance Battalion) of the 3rd Marine Division and a company from III Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) along with their ROKMC counterparts took part in the drills that was carried out in the Gimpo and Ganghwa regions of South Korea. The KMEP drills involved training in combined operations, company level tactical operations and mountain warfare, according to the release.
On Friday, Australia’s Defence Department issued a release announcing the completion of maritime surveillance operations in the Indo-Pacific as part of the first iteration of the Australian Defence Force’s regional presence deployments, “Exercising Australia’s freedom of navigation, the Royal Australian Air Force successfully completed maritime surveillance missions in the Indo-Pacific region under the first iteration of regional presence deployments for 2025.”, read the release.
The release added that RAAF P-8A Poseidons of No.11 Squadron RAAF conducted maritime domain awareness operations alongside Royal Australian Navy (RAN) destroyer HMAS Hobart (DDG39) in the South China Sea. Hobart wrapped up its six-week deployment by the end of February.
It also said that together with Hobart, the RAAF Poseidons participated in a multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity (MCA) within the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone on Feb.5 with U.S., Japanese and Philippines forces, “These Defence activities form part of Australia’s longstanding contribution to regional security and stability, while enhancing maritime security and upholding international law and ensuring readiness to respond to shared security challenges.”, concluded the release.
The release did not state how many RAAF Poseidons participated in the deployment but during that period, a total of two RAAF Poseidons had been observed by flight trackers and aircraft spotters to be operating from Singapore and Clark Air Base, Philippines.
During the operations over the South China Sea, a People’s Liberation Army Air Force J-16 fighter released flares 30 meters away in front of a Poseidon on Feb. 11, prompting the Australian government to express its concern to China on such actions. China’s Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Snr. Col Zhang Xiaogang on Feb. 14 stated in response that Australia deliberately infringed upon China’s rights and interests in the South China Sea and China’s expulsion of the Poseidon was a legitimate defense of national sovereignty and security.
