Hundreds of military personnel from Colombia, the United States, Brazil, and the Dominican Republic have gathered for Relámpago-Ángel de los Andes 2025, the Colombian Air Force’s (FAC) largest multinational exercise. The joint drills, which combine air superiority, rescue, and humanitarian assistance scenarios, began July 28 and are set to conclude August 9 across various locations in Colombia.
Some 700 military personnel, including pilots, crews, technical staff, doctors, and special operations forces, are involved, alongside international observers.
Colombian Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Mauricio Palacios Cortés, deputy director of combat operations, said that over 30 fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft are deployed. These include F-16 fighter jets from the United States and Kfir fighters from the FAC, as well as strategic tankers and transport aircraft like the KC-135, KC-767, and C-130. Brazilian E-99 intelligence and early warning aircraft and FAC CN-235 aircraft are also participating, alongside UH-60 and HH-60 helicopters from Colombia and the United States for search and rescue, medical evacuation, and special operations.
“This deployment makes the 2025 edition one of the largest air exercises ever conducted in Colombia, with a comprehensive approach encompassing offensive and defensive air operations, civil-military cooperation, cyber defense, and space scenarios, all under NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) standards,” Lt. Col. Palacios told Diálogo.
Preparation for the 2025 exercise involved months of coordination among all participating nations. This included initial, intermediate, and final planning conferences to define scenarios, objectives, security procedures, and logistics. Participants also underwent theoretical and virtual training in NATO doctrines, standardized communications, mission planning, and electronic warfare. The use of international operational documents helped standardize procedures, with centralized coordination by the FAC Air Operations Command ensuring interoperability and security prior to deployment.
Among the missions being carried out are Air Defense, Close Air Support, Air Interdiction, Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR), special operations, and cyber and space missions, reflecting the sophistication of current conflicts, Lt. Col. Palacios explained. He emphasized two significant activities this year: humanitarian medical assistance and a maritime search and rescue (MSAR) exercise.
The humanitarian medical assistance activity provides medical and dental care to vulnerable communities, demonstrating how air power serves the civilian population. The MSAR exercise, conducted in Colombia’s Caribbean Coveñas area, integrates capabilities from the Colombian Air Force, Navy, and the United States. It simulates the location and rescue of personnel in open waters, using air and maritime assets under demanding and realistic scenarios, applying NATO standards.
A look back
“The Relámpago exercise has been held annually since 2014. Its name honors Lieutenant Colonel Luis Francisco Llanes Ferreira, a T-37, A-37, and Kfir pilot instructor known by his call sign ‘Relámpago,’ who died in the line of duty in 2014,” Lt. Col. Palacios said. “The first edition was held at Combat Air Command No. 5 (CACOM-5) in Rionegro, Antioquia, as a bilateral exercise between the FAC, at that time, and the U.S. Air Force. In that first version, air-to-air missions and basic combat were practiced, focusing on the tactical strengthening of both forces.”
Over time, Relámpago has evolved in scope, complexity, and participation to become a multinational exercise. It now includes air-to-surface operations, CSAR, close air support, special operations, electronic warfare, cyber defense, and space missions, all under hybrid conflict scenarios. “Relámpago has established itself as a key training exercise for the FAC, focused on air combat operations and advanced training under NATO standards, alongside allies such as the United States,” Lt. Col. Palacios said.
The international exercise Ángel de los Andes, also led by the FAC, began in 2015. It focused on multinational training for CSAR operations and humanitarian support missions, initially involving military delegations from 10 countries and the Colombian Civil Defense.
In 2023, Relámpago and Ángel de los Andes were jointly conducted for the first time, integrating scenarios of air superiority, rescue, and humanitarian assistance. This combined format has continued annually. Even amid pandemic restrictions in 2020, an innovative version proceeded with participation from the FAC, the French Air Force, and Brazil as an observer.
During that 2020 edition, Relámpago V included missions with night vision goggles and more complex combined operations training for the first time, covering offensive and defensive air counterpower, interdiction, close air support, and search and rescue missions.
Post-pandemic, the exercises have continued to evolve, incorporating technological advances now part of the 2025 edition. These include multi-domain operations that encompass traditional air missions as well as cyber operations, civil-military cooperation, and space components, such as satellite support and secure navigation.
Lt. Col. Palacios noted that the 2024 edition was a significant milestone, integrating fifth-generation F-35 aircraft and a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier for the first time, which increased tactical complexity and cooperation with U.S. air and naval forces. The 2025 edition, he concluded, brings together the largest deployment of FAC aircraft to date and features international observers from multiple countries, “consolidating its position as a key venue for regional cooperation and operational modernization.”
