A primer of the United States Air Force aircraft/missile Technical Coordination Program

DISAM Journal, Winter, 2003 by Forrest Smith

The TCG released a special pin for the 2002 Olympic Games which were held in Salt Lake City, Utah. The pin design was a combined effort of TCG members. The pin was given exclusively to members of the TCG and dignitaries of foreign countries participating in the TCG program. The design incorporates an F-16 in flight, over the globe, surrounded by flags representing each of the countries that were members of the F-16 TCG at the time. The F-16 TCG pin was limited to a production run of 2002.

Precision Guided Munitions Technical Coordination Group

"In World War II it could take 9,000 bombs to hit a target the size of an aircraft shelter. In Vietnam, it was only 300 bombs. Today we can do it with one laser-guided munition from an F-117."

USAF. Reaching Globally, Reaching Powerfully: The United States Air Force in the Gulf War(September 1991), p. 55

The Precision Guided Munitions Technical Coordination Group (PGMTCG) was established in late 1995. The first team was lead by Kim Tingey, and the initial cadre of four included one engineer, two equipment specialists, and a financial manager. The current Chief is Bailey Shaffer. There are six personnel on the current team. An additional engineer will be added in 2004.

The PGMTCG originally started with six member countries: Bahrain, Canada, Egypt, Korea, Spain, and Taiwan. Membership rapidly expanded to the current level of eleven member countries including Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Egypt, Jordan, Korea, Kuwait, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, and United Kingdom. Additional three or four new members are expected in 2004. The PGMTCG has expanded to offer technical expertise not only on the AGM-65 Maverick Missile, but now offers the same service for the Paveway series (I, II, and III) of Laser Guided Bombs (GBU-10, GBU-12, GBU-16, GBU-22, GBU-24). As their charter expands, they will be adding additional air-to-ground missile technical support. All individuals within the PGMTCG have years of experience with the Maverick and Paveway systems. This experience and knowledge is available to all member countries.

Initial and follow on membership in the PGMTCG is voluntary and is usually established on an LOA with four lines that cover the following:

* MAVERICK internal services,

* PAVEWAY internal services,

* Combined contract services, and

* Studies and surveys.

Costs of the program are based on number of weapon systems in the member's inventory.

Oklahoma Air Logistics Center (OC-ALC) at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma is home of the E-3 and KC-135 TCGs.

E-3 Electronic Combat International Security Assistance Program

The Boeing E-3 Sentry is the West's principal Airborne Warning and Control System platform. The E-3 is a military version of the Boeing 707/320 commercial airframe with a rotating radar dome. The first flight of the E-3A took place in October 1975. The first 2 United States Air Force E-3s were modified commercial 707-320 airframes converted to the military version after completion of flight tests.

The E3/KE3 TCG was formed in1982. The first TCG Chief was Cletus White and a team of one performed the initial support! Today the E3/KE3 TCG has forty personnel, led by the current Chief, Bob Steyer. The current E-3/KE-3 TCG customers include the NATO, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and the French Republic. The member countries currently comprise 53 percent of the world wide fleet.