Military Fighter Jets Training At Sarasota Bradenton Airport

SARASOTA, FL — Those wondering why there are military jets flying in and out of Sarasota Bradenton International Airport the past few days have no reason to worry.

The Airborne Tactical Advantage Company is working with the airport and Dolphin/Hawthorne Aviation based in Sarasota to stage air combat exercises from the airport, according to a news release.

The exercises, which started Sunday, will take place through June 14. Fighter jets arriving and departing from the airport include two foreign-made planes, the Israeli F-21 Kfirs and the Swiss Mk-58 Hawker Hunters.

The company is the world’s largest outsourced civilian tactical airborne training organization. It maintains a fleet of transonic, which is near the speed of sound, and supersonic aircraft to support the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Air Force, the news release said.

ATAC is contracted by the .S. military to engage in various training missions such as fighter intercepts, basic fighter maneuvers, offensive and defensive counter-air tactics, and advanced electronic attacks.