Rear Adm. Mark Guadagnini, Carrier Strike Group 9 (CSG 9) commander, recently joined the VAQ-131 Lancers for a flight in an EA-6B Prowler.

Guadagnini joined Lt. Cmdr. Kelly Richards, Lt. Cmdr. Brett Stevenson and Lt. Zach Simms for a unit level training flight simulating the defense of the Carrier Strike Group from external threats.

“It is amazing how powerful the Prowler is in the electronic warfare world — but only when used in the hands of well-trained pilots and electronic countermeasures officers.” said Guadagnini.

During the flight, the crew demonstrated the role the Prowler played in Operations Enduring Freedom (OEF) and New Dawn (OND) in addition to the traditional electronic attack mission of countering and defeating enemy radar and communication systems.

“It was a great opportunity to showcase all of the capabilities that the Prowler brings to the fight, within the context of our current conflict in Afghanistan as well as in more traditional strike warfare roles,” said Stevenson.

The flight was made possible by the continued hard work of the squadron’s Maintenance Department. From the aviation electronics technicians to the aviation structural mechanics, every Sailor involved in maintenance routinely put in long hours to ensure the aircraft were ready for flight to fulfill any mission.

The Plane Captain for this sortie, Aviation Electrician’s Mate Airman Nickolos James commented on the flight. 

“It was a great honor to have the carrier strike group commander fly in one of our planes,” said James. “We work extremely hard to keep these jets flying.”

Guadagnini is a Naval Aviator with 4,600 hours of flight time in 52 different types of aircraft. This flight marks the first time he has flown with the Lancers. He opted to fly in the aft cockpit during this flight in order to better see the “nuts and bolts” of executing Electronic Attack.

After the flight, Guadagnini praised the Lancers.

“I have been impressed with the professionalism of the entire Lancer team: the maintainers, administrative personnel, Intelligence specialists, and the aviators, throughout this deployment,” said Guadagnini. “This is truly a warfighting outfit of the highest order.”