Spectacular footage of the joint exercise: Croatian Rafales and American F-16 in flight action together

On 12 and 13 March 2025, at the Colonel Marko Živković barracks in Velika Gorica, as part of planned joint activities, the Croatian Air Force conducted joint flying activities with members of the 31st Fighter Wing (31 FW) of the US Air Forces in Europe from Aviano Air Base, Italian Republic.

The Croatian Air Force participated in the aforementioned activity with Rafale aircraft, while the US Air Force participated with F-16 aircraft.

The Chief of the Croatian Air Force Operations Centre and coordinator of activities on behalf of the Croatian Air Force and the Croatian Armed Forces, Colonel Vlado Pavlinec, emphasizes the importance of such joint flight activities: “With this joint activity, in addition to increasing interoperability and exchange of experiences, we also increase the training and readiness of flight crews in carrying out their flight tasks. Such activities contribute to the exchange of experiences and mutual support of the ground technical personnel in reception, inspection and preparation of the aircraft, as well as joint analysis of the completed and preparation of future flight tasks.”

In addition to increasing the level of training of the Croatian Air Force pilots on Rafale aircraft, these joint flying activities allow pilots to acquire knowledge and skills in cooperation with experienced Allied Air Forces.

Also, these joint flight activities are carried out with the aim of exchanging experience, interoperability, joint training of procedures in the preparation and implementation of flight tasks, building stronger trust and partnership in NATO alliance, but also increasing the readiness and capabilities of the Croatian Armed Forces, particularly the Croatian Air Force.