A portion of M-28 in Alger County will be closed Tuesday, June 28, while the Michigan Air National Guard hosts aircraft exercises on the highway.
Twelve military aircraft will touch down and conduct other operations on a closed, 9,000-foot section of four-lane highway between Wetmore and Shingleton in Alger County.
To facilitate the exercise, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) will close M-28 east of Munising from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on June 28. During the closure, eastbound traffic will be detoured on H-58 to H-15 and back to M-28. The route will be reversed for westbound traffic. The closure will be posted on MDOT’s Mi Drive travel information website and detour route signs will help guide travelers through the area.
There will be no civilian access to the M-28 landing zone during this period.
From June 27-29, the Michigan Air National Guard will host exercise Northern Agility 22-1 at Sawyer International Airport, Hanley Field and a closed portion of M-28 in Alger County, Michigan.
The exercise, held in partnership with Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), the Michigan Department of Transportation, the Michigan State Police and local agencies, will champion Agile Combat Employment, a universal application to U.S. Air Force operations that enables Airmen to deliver air power anytime, anywhere to complicate an adversary’s decision making.
This progressive readiness event will mark the first time ever in the U.S. that integrated combat turns (ICTs) will be performed during highway-based operations. Northern Agility 22-1 will also integrate innovative technologies through the Kelly Johnson Joint AllDomain Innovation Center to prepare Airmen for the future warfight.
“Northern Agility 22-1 is different from previous events because we will implement contested logistics and integrated combat turns on M-28 for a much more complex ACE event,” said Brig. Gen. Bryan Teff, assistant adjutant general and commander of the Michigan Air National Guard. “Michigan is a champion for ACE and we are integrating some very innovative concepts through our Kelly Johnson Joint All Domain Innovation Center to improve our ability to execute multi-capable Airmen concepts and our ability improve decision speed and accuracy.”
Aircraft participating in Northern Agility 22-1 include the A-10 Thunderbolt II, AFSOC MC-12W, C-145A. C-146A and U-28A, crewed by Airmen representing active duty, Air National Guard, and Air Force Reserve units.
Twelve aircraft will touch down on a closed, 9,000-foot section of four-lane highway in Alger County. Maintenance crews will then perform a series of Integrated Combat Turns, which enable the quick rearming and refueling of a running jet to reduce the aircrew’s ground time and get them back into the air. The landing zone will operate for six hours on June 28. Staging and additional training activities will precede and follow the highway landing June 27 and 29 at Sawyer International Airport.
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