DAVIS-MONTHAN AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. –
Inside the combined air component headquarters during Exercise PANAMAX 2026, U.S. and partner-nation Airmen worked side-by-side to plan, coordinate and execute multinational air operations, strengthening the relationships and decision-making processes needed to respond collectively during a regional crisis.
Operating from the 612th Air Operations Center, the combined air component brought together U.S., Colombian and other partner-nation leaders to plan, coordinate and execute air operations in support of the broader multinational exercise.
U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. David Mineau, commander of Air Forces Southern, served as Combined Force Air Component commander alongside Colombian Aerospace Force Col. Andrés Galvis Espejo, who served as deputy CFACC. Their shared leadership gave partner nations a meaningful role in shaping operational planning and demonstrated the level of trust developed through years of military cooperation.
“Combined leadership is about more than having partner nations represented in the headquarters — it means giving them a meaningful role in how we plan, make decisions and execute,” Mineau said. “When we empower leaders from across the region to contribute their expertise, we become a more capable and effective team.”
For Galvis, serving as deputy CFACC offered an opportunity to operate at a different level of command — participating in strategic discussions, anticipating the information senior leaders require and helping translate strategic direction into operational decisions.
An experienced fighter pilot and operational planner, Galvis brought extensive combined and coalition experience to the headquarters. He has participated in multinational exercises including RED FLAG, RED FLAG RESCUE, RELÁMPAGO and CRUZEX, and previously served as Colombia's director of combat operations, responsible for force generation, operational readiness and advanced training of combat squadrons in joint and combined environments. His background also includes command of Colombia's 111th Air Superiority Squadron and Combat Group No. 21.
That experience allowed Galvis to contribute a distinctly Colombian perspective to the combined headquarters, including experience with dynamic targeting, rules of engagement and the operational and governmental coordination required to employ airpower.
“Interoperability begins with understanding and respecting the strengths that each nation contributes to the mission,” Galvis said. “By training together, exchanging operational experiences and working within a common joint and combined planning framework, we develop the trust required to operate effectively as a coalition. That trust is essential when time-sensitive decisions must be made in response to a complex regional contingency or in cooperative security scenarios.”
The combined air component is responsible for planning, coordinating, tasking and assessing air operations in support of the joint force commander's objectives. In a multinational environment, that requires leaders to understand not only different military capabilities, but also national authorities, approval processes and command relationships.
PANAMAX provides a realistic environment to work through those complexities before they are encountered during a contingency.
That ability to integrate quickly is particularly important in a region connected by shared security and economic interests. A disruption to the Panama Canal, a strategically and economically significant waterway connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, could have effects far beyond Panama's borders, making its continued security and neutrality a shared regional interest.
For Galvis, PANAMAX demonstrated how those shared interests can translate into coordinated action.
“PANAMAX demonstrates the value of enduring partnerships; it was a place to confirm: strengthened operational relationships become a strategic capability to win in complex regional air operations,” Galvis said. “Throughout the exercise, officers from different nations worked together to transform individual capabilities into a unified operational effort, and we became a real multinational air force team. The integration of diverse perspectives enhances the quality of our planning and reinforces our collective ability to respond to shared security challenges.”
The partnership between the United States and Colombia has long been a cornerstone of PANAMAX. Across multiple iterations of the exercise, Colombian leaders have served in senior air component leadership roles, reflecting the enduring trust between both nations and their shared commitment to regional security.
For Galvis, the opportunity to serve in senior leadership during PANAMAX was also an opportunity to bring lessons home.
“Serving as Deputy Combined Force Air Component Commander has been a blessing, a privilege and a unique opportunity for my professional growth, as an Air Power leader,” Galvis said. “The experience of being coached by and working alongside General Mineau, as well as fellow leaders from across the region, has reinforced the importance of trust, interoperability and shared leadership. These lessons will continue to strengthen the Colombian Aerospace Force’s contribution to regional security and multinational air operations."
PANAMAX allows participating nations to build those relationships before a crisis occurs, ensuring leaders understand how to integrate capabilities, coordinate decisions and operate together when regional security demands a combined response.