00:00Four French Rafale fighter jets landed Tuesday at Ielson Air Force Base in Alaska.
00:06after flying over an Arctic route through Greenland for the first time, as part of the deployment
00:12French Pegase 26. According to the Associated Press, this route offers air and space forces
00:19French companies have a new option for reaching the Indo-Pacific, while also allowing the
00:24Crews train in Arctic conditions. The flight departs from Istres Air Base in the south.
00:30The flight from France to Alaska took almost 11 hours and included five air-to-air refuelings.
00:38Air-to-air refueling allows the Rafale to cover long distances without needing to land.
00:44Throughout Pégase 26, the houses are expected to accumulate around 80 transit flight hours, as
00:51that the deployment is progressing from the Arctic to the Indo-Pacific and subsequently to the Middle East and
00:57Middle. For the first time, we took the High North route, the one that crosses Greenland, he declared.
01:03General Julien Sabene, commander of Pegasus 26. Operating in the Arctic poses challenges for the
01:10crews, including changing weather conditions, long distances and the number
01:17limited number of available airfields. France also considers the Arctic route as a
01:22alternative route to reach the Indo-Pacific and the French overseas territories, in case
01:29Other routes may become unusable during a crisis. The deployment includes Rafale fighter jets and A330 tanker aircraft.
01:37MRTT Phoenix and A400M Atlas transport aircraft, enabling the French air and space forces,
01:46to move aircraft, personnel, and equipment over long distances. In Eilson, the crews
01:53French aircraft will train alongside the United States Air Force, including F-16s and F-35s.
02:01The objective of the training is to improve the capacity of French and American forces to
02:07operate jointly. The Rafales also carried simulated weaponry during the flight.
02:13Sabené explained that these replicas reproduce some of the aerodynamic effects of carrying
02:19real weaponry, allowing pilots to train in more realistic conditions.
02:25"Our goal is to train the way we would fight tomorrow," Sabené stated.
02:32During Pegase 26, the crews will operate in very different environments, from the conditions
02:38Arctic environments in Alaska to tropical and desert environments in later stages of deployment.
02:44The exercise involves some 300 French military personnel, four Rafale fighter jets, and three aircraft.
02:51The deployment consists of an A-330 MRTT Phoenix tanker and two A-400M Atlas transport aircraft.
02:59It runs from September 8th to October 15th and includes training and exercises with various
03:05allied and partner countries.
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