Ocean Sky refers to an international air combat exercise held every two years by the Spanish Air and Space Force at Gando Air Base, and which is the successor to the legendary DACT exercises that used to take place annually at this air base. The 2025 edition was the one that brought together the largest number of participating countries and aircraft, with the base’s ramp reaching the limit of its capacity at the busiest moments of the exercise.
Among the participants, the four Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighters of the Indian Air Force undoubtedly stood out for their exotic and unusual nature. Not only because India was the first non-NATO country to take part, but also because it operated modern fighters of Russian design equipped with thrust-vectoring engines. Also noteworthy were the fourteen F-15E Strike Eagle fighters from the 48th Fighter Wing of the United States Air Force, marking the first time this version of the iconic F-15 took part in the exercise. The German Air Force deployed five Eurofighter Typhoons from the “Bavarian Tigers,” including one painted in this year’s NATO TIGER MEET special livery, which took place in Portugal. The other two international participants were more familiar from previous editions: the Portuguese Air Force with its F-16AMs and the Hellenic Air Force with F-16Cs.
