PRANG trains with South Carolina, Tennessee in ACE exercise

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Eliezer Soto
  • 156th Wing

U.S. Airmen assigned to the Puerto Rico, South Carolina and Tennessee Air National Guards partnered during exercise Caribbean Fox to execute Agile Combat Employment (ACE), airfield operations and hot-pit refueling while in a simulated contested environment at Muñiz Air National Guard Base, Carolina, Puerto Rico, July 23, 2024.


Caribbean Fox is an exercise hosted by the 169th Fighter Wing designed to challenge participant units in dynamic training scenarios over a two week time period and offer tailored training for accomplishing critical ACE readiness requirements.

“Partnering with the South Carolina and Tennessee Air National Guards during this exercise strengthens the Puerto Rico Air National Guard’s joint and modern interoperability of the ACE concept within the Caribbean region,” said U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Humberto Pabon Jr., the assistant adjutant general-air, PRANG. “Caribbean Fox showcases ANG units across the U.S. the opportunity to train within the Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands territory, which prepares our forces to succeed in meeting great power competition.”

The 156th Wing was selected as the contingency location for the exercise, where two F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets and a KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft were tasked with arriving, executing critical mission requirements and rapidly redeploying while under threat of simulated opposing forces.
“Supporting ACE exercises such as Caribbean Fox, enhances our multi-capable Airmen’s readiness by employing direct inter-operational support from our installation’s strategic location,” said U.S. Air Force Col. Evaristo Orengo, the 156th Wing commander, PRANG.

Current PRANG strategic capabilities within the organization’s area of responsibility in the Caribbean region, allow the execution of robust ACE training exercises similar to those executed in the Pacific, which include ramp space, runways, a geographical low-level tactical space land, diverse overwater routes, and specialized support from Contingency Response and Combat Communications Airmen.

For U.S. Air Force Col. Michael Ferrario, the 169th Fighter Wing commander, this exercise will allow his Airmen to build on what they learned during Exercise Typhoon Fox earlier this year and apply it in the execution of ACE requirements in Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands.

“During Typhoon Fox our focus was on evaluating our recently trained Multi-Capable Airmen. Caribbean Fox will take those Airmen, and others assigned to the 169th Fighter Wing, relocate them to St. Croix, a semi-austere environment with limited resources, to challenge their effectiveness in carrying out mission-critical tasks while employing combat airpower to deter and defeat the highest level of adversary capabilities.”