U.S.-Thai-Singaporean Airmen reinforce relationships in Korat

  • Published
  • By Capt. David Herndon
  • HQ Pacific Air Forces
KORAT, Thailand --  Hundreds of Thai children and school teachers joined more than 75 Airmen from the U.S., Royal Thai and Republic of Singapore Air Forces to celebrate during a combined civic action engagement here, Mar. 16.

The Airmen, all participants in this year's Cope Tiger large force, multi-lateral air exercise, spent the day serving as ambassadors for their nations at Ang Huai Yang School in the Mueang District of the Nakorn Ratchasima Province. 

The Cope Tiger service members were greeted with local foods, performances from the Royal Thai Air Force Band and a pavilion full of children waiting to interact and learn more about the people flying and supporting exercise operations at the neighboring Royal Thai Air Base, Korat Field.

"I am so happy that we could come together as a team to support our neighbors," said Royal Thai Air Force Flight Lieutenant Khanthaman Devakul, "The kids are really happy to meet [U.S., Thai and Singaporean] Airmen .. it is very important to build partnerships between our three nations."

According to Maj. Jon Duncan, Joint U.S. Military Advisory Group air operations officer and regional area strategist for Thailand, multilateral civic action engagements like this underscore our partnerships in the Southeast Asia region and equally important to those are community relationships that are reinforced through regular engagement.
"This was about reinforcing our relationship with our neighbors," he said. "We do a lot of flying out here during Cope Tiger and it's important that we show our neighbors that we care."

Caring for local neighbors in Korat is nothing new to Tech Sgt. Chad Perry, who is on his second mobilization to Cope Tiger as a communication and information specialist. The sergeant coordinated a majority of the U.S. contingent's donation drive and school equipment purchasing.

"I'm getting to learn a lot about the community and also a lot from our Royal Thai and Republic of Singapore counterparts," he said. "I'm taking lessons learned from last year's exercise and using them to better what we're doing this time around."

U.S. Airmen were able donate nearly $2,500 dollars of school equipment deemed needed for the children by school administrations and have several more community engagement aligned in Korat and Udon Thani, Thailand through March 23.

Cope Tiger aims to develop common operating pictures for participant aircrews and provides a venue to develop multilateral and coalition procedures in air missions. 

The exercise concludes March 25.