The Gulf of Alaska provides invaluable training space needed to prepare U.S. service members to protect and defend the United States and its allies. The military's largest joint training exercise in Alaska is Northern Edge. Maritime training activities associated with this exercise occur within a designated Temporary Maritime Activities Area, which is located south of Prince William Sound and east of Kodiak Island in the Gulf of Alaska.
Since 1975, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command has met defense objectives by training military forces for potential crises in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. Mission-critical military training activities in Alaska occur within the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, which includes the Temporary Maritime Activities Area in the Gulf of Alaska and existing U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army inland air and land training areas. These training areas provide realistic environments for military forces and interagency partners to practice both basic and complex training activities. Training in the Gulf of Alaska allows for varying degrees of scenario complexity, which enhances the quality of training and better prepares service members to respond to world events.
Joint training exercises bring together personnel from different branches of the military to plan and participate in activities at sea, in the air, and on land. These exercises provide opportunities for forces to practice tactics, techniques, and procedures to improve coordination and fulfill military readiness requirements.