The Royal Saudi Air Force team at the concluding ceremony of Rodeo Exercise 2011 concluded at Lewis McCord Base in Seattle, US. — SPA SEATTLE — Rodeo Exercise 2011 concluded at Lewis McCord Base in Seattle in the United States with the participation of aircraft from the Royal Saudi Air Force. The closing ceremony was attended by General Raymond Jones, Commander of US Military Air Transport Service. Participants in the exercise commended the distinguished standards of Royal Saudi Air Force and its high precision in various air operations. Group Captain Mutlaq Bin Samhan Al-Jaedi of Royal Saudi Air Force attributed the success of the exercise to the unlimited support provided by the Saudi government to this force. Group Captain Badr Bin Abd Rabo Al-Maliki said the Saudi aircraft participated in the exercise with highest preparedness and full readiness. The Rodeo, sponsored by the US Air Mobility Command (AMC) is a readiness competition which focuses on improving air mobility forces' professional core abilities. More than 150 teams and 3,000 people from the US Air Force and Air Force Reserve, as well as teams from other nations, participated in the event. The Rodeo, which began in 1956, “tests the flight and ground skills of aircrews as well as the related skills of special tactics, security forces, aerial port operations, aeromedical evacuation, and maintenance team members,” the competition fact sheet states. “It also provides valuable joint and combined training for all participants.”
