Red Flag is a contested combat training exercise involving the air forces of the United States and its allies. It is coordinated at Nellis Air Force Base and conducted on the vast bombing and gunnery ranges of the Nevada Test and Training Range. Red Flag was established in 1975 as the brainchild of Lt. Col. Richard “Moody” Suter and one of the initiatives directed by General Robert J. Dixon, then commander of Tactical Air Command, to better prepare forces for combat. Lessons from Vietnam showed that if a pilot survived his first 10 combat missions, his probability of survival for the remaining missions increased substantially. Red Flag was designed to expose each “Blue 4” pilot to his first 10 “combat missions” at Nellis, allowing him to be more confident and effective in actual combat. This same principle continues to guide Red Flag today, with the goal of preparing Air Force, Joint, and Coalition pilots, aircrew, and operators to fight against a peer-level adversary in any combat environment. Tasked to plan and control this training, the 414th Combat Training Squadron’s mission is to maximize the combat readiness, capability and survivability of participating units by providing realistic, multi-domain training in a combined air, ground, space, and electronic threat environment while providing an opportunity for a free exchange of ideas between forces. Nellis AFB is home to many military memorials. The U.S. Air Force Warfare Center at Nellis reports directly to the Air Combat Command. The center was founded on Sept. 1, 1966, as the U.S. Air Force Tactical Fighter Weapons Center. It was later renamed the U.S. Air Force Warfare Center in October 2005. The Mission: The USAFWC conducts warfighter-centric live and virtual operational test and evaluation, tactics development, and advanced training to optimize Air Force capabilities and prepare airmen for joint, all domain combat operations.