- Thousands of US soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines are in Thailand this month for the latest edition of Exercise Cobra Gold.
- Among those present are the US soldiers tasked with keeping the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter flying.
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PHITSANULOK, Kingdom of Thailand - US Army Spc. Chauncey Ikaika Akau lies on the ground beneath the fuselage of an AH-64D Apache Longbow to check for any leaks.
Both Akau and the helicopter he's working on are with 2nd Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment stationed at Wheeler Army Airfield Hawaii. He crawls out from under the aircraft to continue with the rest of his pre-flight maintenance checks before it takes off for a mission during Exercise Cobra Gold 2020, February 26.
"My main purpose and goal is to make sure these Apaches are full-fit operational to support the other units throughout the exercise," Akau explains.