A CH-47 Chinook descends on a landing zone to pick up TACPs from the U.S. Air Force 169th Air Support Operations Squadron and the Latvian National Armed Forces after a reconnaissance mission at Operation Northern Strike in Grayling Air Gunnery Range, Grayling, Mich., Aug. 14, 2014. Northern Strike was a 3-week-long exercise led by the National Guard that demonstrated the combined power of joint and multinational air and ground forces. TACPs with the Air National Guard’s 169th ASOS from Peoria, Ill., and more than 5,000 other armed forces members from 12 states and two coalition nations participated in the combat training. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Lealan Buehrer/Released)