U.S. Army Paratroopers Leap into Arctic Tundra for Spartan Pegasus. This operation validates U.S. Army Alaska's unique ability to conduct air operation and ground mobility in extreme arctic conditions.
The Soldiers participating in Exercise Spartan Pegasus were from the 25th Infantry Division's 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), out of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, just outside Anchorage, Alaska.
All 150 Soldiers who flew in the Air Force C-130 and C-117 aircraft out of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson had already received cold-weather indoctrination training, which meant they knew how to move in snowshoes and skis and could set up a 10-man arctic tent and stove.
While the primary goal of the exercise was finding and recovering the simulated satellite, the excercise's most crucial aspect was actually the freezing temperatures, which tested the Soldiers' ability to operate in the frigid cold.
The most difficult part of the jump was dropping from an aircraft at about 1,200 feet and moving at 200 mph through the freezing air. A few Soldiers contracted frostbite, but they were swiftly evacuated in small unit sustainment vehicles and Chinook helicopters, as safety was paramount to the training
Credit Senior Airman Joshua DeGuzman and David Vergun