Cope Thunder exercises between PH, U.S. set to return to Basa Air Base

Cope Thunder 26, a bilateral military exercise between the Philippines and the United States, is set to return on April 6, and will run until April 17, as part of a revival of the decades-old operation in the country.

The exercise, which will be held over Basa Air Base in Pampanga, is designed to facilitate joint training with the Philippine Air Force and the United States Air Force, and improve interoperability between both forces, the U.S. military said in a statement.

The event’s revival has become possible, mostly due to an expanded defense engagement with the U.S. through a series of joint exercises, allowing additional access to sites for its military, as well as expanded alliance activity.

Cope Thunder was first held in the Philippines in 1976, later moved to Alaska in the United States, then once again revived back in the country in 2023.

In the exercise’s return between April 8 to 19 in 2024 after its revival the year before, interoperability and readiness between both allied air forces was strengthened, with bilateral fighter training and enhancing combat interoperability given emphasis through the conduct of air defence and fighter maneuver drills.

Furthermore, in an iteration of the operation held on April 7 to 18, 2025, the exercise was expanded, with it running over Basa Air Base, Clark Air Base, and Colonel Ernesto Ravina Air Base, taking a larger footprint over Northern Luzon.

Cope Thunder 26 continues the trajectory, showing that air force cooperation has become a steady feature of the U.S.-Philippine alliance during the Marcos Jr. administration.