In June 2008 the squadron participated in Exercise Pitch Black, which is a biennial military exercise hosted by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and based on RAAF Base Tindal. The aim of the exercise is to practice Offensive Counter Air and Defensive Counter Air combat, in a simulated war environment and consists of a “red team” and a “blue team”. As a member of the “red team”, the Sumos acted as the force multiplier of the exercise by providing Fixed Wing Aerial Refueling.