Red Flag-Alaska planners take those factors into consideration when designing exercises so participants get the maximum training possible without being placed at an unfair advantage during simulated combat scenarios.

[4] Conceived by Brigadier General Richard G. Head, the exercise was devised as a way to give aircrews from across Asia their first taste of warfare in a realistic training environment.

[6] Therefore, the goal of Cope Thunder was to provide each aircrew with these first vital missions, increasing their chances of survival in combat environments.

Cope Thunder planners took those factors into consideration when designing exercises so participants received the maximum training possible without being placed at an unfair advantage during simulated combat scenarios.

Since its inception, thousands of people from all four branches of the US military, as well as the armed services of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Turkiye, and the United Kingdom, have taken part in multinational Red Flag-Alaska exercises.

Participating aircraft include A/OA-10, B-1B Lancer, B-2 Spirit, B-52 Stratofortress, C-130, C-160, E-2 Hawkeye, E-3 Sentry, F-15C, F-15E Strike Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F/A-18, F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning II, EA-6B, EA-18, KC-130, KC-135 Stratotanker, KC-10 Extender, HC-130, various helicopters and CF-18, Panavia Tornado, Hawker Siddeley Nimrod, Vickers VC10, Aero L-159 Alca, Sukhoi Su-30MKI, Eurofighter Typhoon, Mitsubishi F-2, JAS39 Gripen and SEPECAT Jaguar as well as Stinger teams from the Japan Self-Defense Forces.

Range threat emitters - electronic devices which send out signals simulating anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) and surface-to-air missile (SAM) launches - provide valuable surface-to-air training and are operated by a civilian contractor as directed by 353d Combat Training Squadron staff personnel.

Exercises provide an operations training environment for participants such as unit-level intelligence experts, maintenance crews, command and control elements as well as staff and planning personnel.

Pilots from the 174th Attack Wing Hancock Air Force Base, New York, more than 4,000 miles away flew the drones remotely.