Exercise Golden Eagle:
The exercise had one objective for each side - destroy the other unit's ability to operate military aircraft.
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At dawn twenty Rattler MK.IV strike aircraft escorted by sixteen SF-04 II fighters made their way from one side of the Falken Reich to the other, attacking the Saltwater-occupied runways. They were met by twelve AC-M47E Libellule stealth fighters, which shot down three Rattlers and an SF-04, but lost two of their own.

Lykins Rattler of the Falken Air Force enroute to strike Saltwater air bases.
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The Rattlers struck their targets, "destroying" seven FA-12 Razorbacks and two F/A-21 Strike Viserions. They also shot up a runway, reducing flight operations.
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The SWAF launched a counter-strike. Eight Strike Viserions, sixteen Razorbacks and sixteen AC-M33Bs flew towards the Falken airfields. Surface-to-air missile sites attacked the strike package, shooting down a Strike Viserion, but they failed to gain any further hits due to effective radar jamming.

FA-12 Razorback of the Saltwater Air Force climbs over mountain ranges to attack Falken airfields.
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The attack ripped through the hangers of the Falken air base, "destroying" eight Rattlers that were rearming and setting two C-45s "alight". However two Razorbacks were caught by patrolling Falken aircraft.
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Airstrikes continued across two days, giving the two air forces a chance to practise combat servicing and practice striking heavily-defended ground targets. By the end of the exercise it had become clear that, whilst the SWAF aerial combat was superior to that of their Falken counterparts, the FAF was able to strike small targets with much greater precision.