Air Force Lt. Col. Mark Sletten lowers the canopy on an F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft before taxiing to take off from Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, Dec. 7, 2015. More than 30 maintenance airmen worked an early shift to help launch several jets to Tyndall Air Force, Fla., for Checkered Flag 16-1, a large-force exercise that simulates a deployed environment to cross-check weapons systems. Sletten is an F-35 Program integration officer. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford