Royal Air Force Wing Cmdr. Philip Holdcroft, Ninth Air Force J3 Operations Directorate exchange officer, talks with other exercise participants from the United Kingdom during Mission Readiness Exercise (MRX) 19-2, Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., Dec. 13, 2018. December marked the first time international partners participated in a Ninth AF exercise with more than 10 United Kingdom participants from the RAF and Standing Joint Force Headquarters. MRX 19-2 was an initial operational capability certification event designed to demonstrate Ninth Air Force’s ability to effectively plan, prepare, execute and assess Combined Joint Task Force operations at the operational level of war as tasked by the Air Force Chief of Staff. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Sean Sweeney)