AF weapons evals over Gulf of Mexico

EGLIN AFB, Fla. - Explosions, combat jets and armed boats with faux rocket launchers will all be part of upcoming Air Force training exercises in early November. Eglin AFB’s 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group will be conducting operations from Nov. 1-3 and Nov. 6-8 in the Gulf of Mexico and Choctawhatchee Bay as part of a Weapon System Evaluation Program. In the mornings of those dates between 8 a.m. and 12 noon, jets will be releasing munitions about 20 miles south of Destin in the Gulf. The test will be conducted within a cleared safety range that will include boat surveillance. Notices to mariners will be issued, and flyers will be handed out at the local NW Florida marinas. Between 1-5 p.m. daily, about 30 boats traveling in formation will transverse between the Mid-Bay Bridge and the U.S. Highway 331 Bridge, including 10-to-20 miles south of Destin in the Gulf of Mexico, according to base officials. The boat formation will be used as visual targets by military aircraft flying over the area. Some boats will have mock-up, fake deck guns and rocket launcher tubes, but no live weapons or ammunition will be involved. The boats also will be using marine flares as visual markers. (Source: News Herald 10/27/17) UPDATE: The operations is for a host of military aircraft from around the country participating in Combat Hammer, an annual weapons system evaluation exercise at Eglin AFB.