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Sentry Savannah 2015 takes off

20 Feb 2015 | Pfc. Jonah Lovy Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort

The skies above Savannah, Ga., scream and roar with the sound of aircraft as Marines, airmen and guardsmen participate in the Sentry Savannah 2015 exercise hosted by the Savannah Combat Readiness Training Center, Feb. 9 to 21.

Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort’s Marine All-Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 224, also known as the Fighting Bengals, are participating in the annual event, designed to give pilots valuable experience flying alongside a large number of aircraft.

A total force of 1,400 air warfighters are training off the coast of Savannah and performing bombing runs at the Townsend Bombing Range throughout the exercise.

The Bengals participated in an exercise with more than 30 Air Force aircraft. The training mission had an offensive and a defensive team. The goal was to not let the offensive team reach the defended area.

"We were the only Marines there and we rarely get to integrate with [the Air Force]," said Capt. Nathaniel Griggs, a pilot with Marine Aviation Training Support Squadron. "They all wanted to know how we do things and we wanted to know how they do things."

Joint exercises are valuable training experiences. Pilots can see how other branches operate and showcase their own skills and strategies.

"The integration was pretty exciting," said Griggs.

Exercises like Sentry Savannah prepare pilots to work with other branches in a time of war.