Defence Online

RAF exercise begins in Croatia

Air June 17, 2019

An RAF exercise in Croatia will see British troops training with French and American personnel to support security in the region.

Members of the Air Assault Brigade and the 11th Infantry Brigade have travelled through the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, and Hungary to Croatia for the RAF exercise. The 600 British personnel will team up with American and French troops for the mission, which will see the troops train in collaboration and speedy response.

Exercise Swift Response will operate over Croatia, Bulgaria, and Romania. The mission will feature 7,000 personnel including 1,000 parachuters, 300 vehicles, and 400 aircraft from 25 countries.

Mark Lancaster, Minister for the Armed Forces, said: “Last week paratroopers re-enacting the D-Day drop into northern France provided a visual reminder of the extraordinary feats made possible when we work hand in glove with Allies toward a common goal.”

“Working together with friends and partners on Exercise Swift Response demonstrates our commitment to Euro-Atlantic Security and to working together to combat shared threats.”

The British Army and RAF will contribute four Wildcat and four Chinook helicopters to the mission along with six Apache helicopters. The exercise aims to improve Euro-Atlantic relations and collaboration between different armed forces.

The troops will practice ground drills and airborne operations including coordinated takeoffs along with working together on accommodation and tracking the movements of allied units. The exercise hopes to set up an international readiness and practice cooperation between forces in various locations as well as establishing peace.

image © Crown Copyright

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Apache Chinook helicopters Croatia Defence Minister Mark Lancaster RAF Training Wildcat helicopters

Post written by: Ciara Houghton