Tigers live at the top of the food chain, deadly predators who show their colors with pride. For centuries, this animal has been feared by human beings but also admired. According to Chinese philosophy, Tigers are brave, unpredictable but confident in their moves, and willing to take on any challenge to protect their loved ones. Its no big surprise, then, that human warriors have long copied the big cats skills and colors. In aviation, examples include World War Twos American Volunteer Group, the "Flying Tigers," and many other groups whose unit emblem or aircraft markings feature gaping jaws or Tiger stripes.
The "every man a tiger" mindset continues strongly within todays North Atlantic Treaty Organization Air Forces, whose so-called Tiger squadrons gather each year during the NATO Tiger Meet. This now two-week exercise originated in 1960 when the Royal Air Forces 74 Squadron and the US Air Forces 79th Tactical Fighter Squadron held their first meet. Amongst cheer and whiskey, the idea of a NATO Tiger Association was born, and over the years squadrons from throughout the Organization joined. After the end of the Cold War in 1989, units from Eastern Europe, Switzerland and Austria were invited. Sadly USAF involvement in recent Tiger Meets has been minimal due to budget cuts and a change of focus in US combat operations.
The days when Tiger Meets were mainly about cheer and whiskey are gone. Todays Tiger Meet focuses on interoperability between the many attending air forces and the range of combat and support aircraft their Tiger squadrons fly. It is a challenge to use all available assets in one flight plan, as there can be many generations of aircraft involved. A 1960s Austrian Saab 105 requires a completely different level of support than a sophisticated Eurofighter. Some jets are able to use air to air refueling, while helicopters could easily refuel in the field if required. But these are challenges NATO forces would face if deployed on real operations, so training to overcome them is of vital importance.
Happily, Tiger Meets still feature aircraft painted in special Tiger markings and competitions between the participating national teams, to build teamwork and camaraderie. Flight safety too was a priority in the earliest Tiger Meets and remains so today.
How does the NATO Tiger Association function? Individual squadrons who use a Tiger or similar "Big cat" image in their squadron markings are invited to join. The commanders of the involved units get a seat in the so called Tiger Assembly, which is the Organizations general authority. The assembly is headed by a Tiger Council of four commanding officers and a chairman. There is also a Tiger Advisory Board where former COs and other alumni Tiger members are seated. These Tiger authorities arrange the Tiger Meets and act as judges for the so-called Tiger Games which award prizes for the best Tiger markings on participating aircraft and social competitions between crews.
The 2014 NATO Tiger Meet was hosted by Aufklärungsgeschwader 51" Immelmann" at Schleswig-Jagel airbase in northern Germany. Some 70 jets and helicopters from eleven countries took part in the exercise, between June 16th and 27th. Many of the member nations who couldnt send jets due to operational commitments elsewhere sent personnel by ground transportation instead.
Unusually colorful participants included a "Bavarian Tiger" Eurofighter from Jagdgeschwader 74 of the German Air Force and a stylish red-and-black Tiger Rafale from the Armeé de lAirs EC.01.007. F-16s from the Dutch, Belgian, Polish, and Turkish air forces sported new Tiger tails for the 2014 meet, while Tiger-themed Gripens, Mirage 2000Cs and F/A-18Cs, and Black Panther Tornado from the host unit, were also present.
Jagels close proximity to ranges over the North Sea and Baltic Sea make it an ideal training environment for fighter jet operations. Sadly, weather is a major flight safety consideration in that part of Europe, and many missions were cancelled during the exercises first week due to clouds and heavy rain. Even so, some 300 sorties were flown over the course of the exercise
The next Tiger Meet is planned for June 2015 at Konya airbase in Turkey.
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