The Spanish Air Force showcases its deployment in Australia for Pitch Black 26

In recent weeks you have been able to see here various articles about the Spanish presence in the Pitch Black 26 exercise in Australia.

The complicated deployment of eleven Spanish military aircraft in northern Australia
The Spanish Air Force's long flight to Australia from inside an A330 MRTT

Pitch Black is the largest multinational air exercise in the Indo-Pacific region. This year's edition, held from July 20 to August 7, included the participation of 12 countries: Australia, France, Germany, India, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Spain, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, and Singapore. Spain deployed 6 Eurofighter combat aircraft from Wing 14, 1 Eurofighter from Wing 46, 2 A400M tanker aircraft from Wing 31, and 2 A330 MRTT transport aircraft from Wing 45. This Wednesday, the Spanish Air Force published a comprehensive report on this deployment (the video is in Spanish; you can activate automatic English subtitles in the player):

Below you can see some images from this video, with some information about what appears in them.

Several Spanish Eurofighters taxiing at RAAF Base Darwin in the Northern Territory. In the foreground, we see the C.16-45 (14-45) of Wing 14, based at Los Llanos (Albacere). Darwin was one of two Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) bases used for this exercise. The other is RAAF Amberley in Queensland.

A Spanish Eurofighter pilot during a pre-flight inspection. He is hanging from the boundary layer diverter above the air intake. This diverter directs the slower, turbulent layer of air in contact with the aircraft's fuselage directly into the engines.

A GBU-16 Paveway II laser-guided bomb on one of the underwing pylons of the starboard wing of a Spanish Eurofighter. This bomb consists of a 500 kg Mk 83 ST Mod 0 free-fall bomb and an MAU-169 semi-active laser seeker. In this case, the bomb carries an inert (i.e., non-explosive) charge, as indicated by the blue color of its casing. These inert bombs are commonly used in training exercises.

An armorer from Wing 14 (recognizable by his red vest and helmet) next to an AIM-2000 IRIS-T medium-range air-to-air missile mounted on one of the underwing pylons on the starboard side of a Spanish Eurofighter. The missile still bears the "Remove before flight" label, indicating that the metal locking pin, which immobilizes the missile's control surfaces to prevent damage from accidental impacts during ground maintenance or from gusts of wind, is still in place.

A corporal from the flight equipment section of Wing 14, responsible for managing, maintaining, and inspecting the helmets and protective and survival equipment of Eurofighter pilots. Next to her are the three types of helmets used by these pilots: from left to right, the HGU-55 with night vision goggles, the HGU-55/P with a dark visor offering high protection against ultraviolet rays (for daytime flight), and the HMSS Striker electronic helmet, developed by BAE Systems, which allows the pilot to lock onto targets simply by turning their head.

A Spanish soldier from the Air Deployment Support Squadron (EADA), a unit of the Spanish Air Force based in Zaragoza, stands next to a Royal Australian Air Force C-130J-30 Super Hercules transport aircraft, A97-441. The EADA has been deployed to Australia to provide security for the aircraft of this expeditionary force and assist with transport operations. It is also contributing to this exercise by organizing runways and guiding aircraft in the operational area.

A Spanish Eurofighter prepared for a night flight. The Typhoon is becoming the backbone of Spain's air defense, a task it has carried out until now alongside the EF-18 Hornet, which is now nearing the end of its operational life. This trip to Australia is the first international deployment of Wing 46 with the Eurofighter, following the farewell to the EF-18s of that unit on June 26, the date on which Typhoon aircraft took over the air defense of the Canary Islands from Gando Air Base.

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Images: Ejército del Aire.