Neptune Strike 24 is over
The major NATO activity Neptune Strike has filled Danish waters, harbors and airspace well over the past week. The activities have provided valuable exercise and training for both Danish and international forces and have emphasized NATO's ability and willingness to defend the alliance.
November 4, 2024 - 10:00
Neptune Strik 24. Photo: Theis Nielsen / Danish Defence Command
By the Danish Defense Command
Since 24 October, NATO's warships and fighter planes have filled well in the vicinity of Denmark. The NATO activity Neptune Strike has brought together a number of units from different NATO nations, where the main objective has been to train units from different nations together.
Soldiers, ships, aircraft from the Danish Armed Forces and the Home Guard have, together with alliance partners, contributed to solving tasks on land, at sea and in the air. The main contribution has been a British and an American aircraft carrier group that have trained together to strengthen the ability to be deployed simultaneously in the same area.
One of the purposes of Neptune Strike is to increase interoperability (e.g. air-land integration) and thus the alliance's overall defense capability. That training is crucial for NATO because there are many nations and many different systems and capacities that must be able to work together.
Aircraft carrier in Danish vicinity
The aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman is the primary unit in US Navy Carrier Strike Group 8. The aircraft carrier has been in and around the North Sea throughout the period, and part of the aircraft that have taken part in the activity in Danish territory are Super Hornets, which is flown to and from the ship.
A large and important part of the training is about logistics and resupplying the units. Therefore, the missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, which is part of the aircraft carrier group during the Neptune Strike, was in Skagen. On Tuesday, the United States and Denmark carried out for the first time a reload of a sharp-edged missile on an American warship in Denmark.
It was an activity that strengthened both the Danish and American ability to resupply ships on missions far from their own bases.
Photo: Simon Elbeck / Danish Defence Command
Sea rescue and combating mines
On Wednesday, the Navy trained 'sea rescue in war' together with the Marine Home Guard and the US Navy in the Kattegat. The scenario was that an American F-16 fighter had been shot down and the pilot was somewhere in the Kattegat.
It was the start of an extensive search in the waters off Læsø.
With wave warnings of up to two metres, the Danish units participated as 'opposing force' - enemies - in the exercise and patrolled around a dummy that floated in the water to represent the downed pilot. It helped give the US Navy helicopter crews realistic training in sea rescue in hostile waters.
The US Seahawk helicopters completed the rescue exercise without any problems, demonstrating their ability to rescue downed crew members in difficult circumstances.
Photo: Theis Nielsen / Danish Defence Command
In addition, a number of scenarios have been carried out in the Kattegat that dealt with neutralizing sea mines.
Neptune Strike strengthens NATO
Overall, Neptune Strike 24 shows and emphasizes that NATO, the Danish and the American military are becoming ever closer together.
The cooperation is important for all nations and for the ability to understand each other's procedures and ensure that systems and personnel can work together across nations.
NATO Enhanced Vigilance Activity Neptune Strike has been led by STRIKFORNATO, which is an operational staff of NATO. It is a recurring exercise, which has also this time taken place in the area from the Mediterranean to the Arctic Circle.