US 6th Fleet and Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO) recently completed an anti-air warfare exercise called ‘At-Sea Demonstration/Formidable Shield 2025’ (‘ASD/FS25’).
In a press release issued on 23 May, US Naval Forces Europe referred to the activity as “Europe’s largest integrated air and missile defence [IAMD] exercise.”
The scale of the exercise is illustrative of the alliance’s increasing focus on IAMD, as a core lesson emerging from observing the large-scale use of ballistic and cruise missiles plus uncrewed aerial vehicles in the Russo-Ukraine war.
Conducted across the North Atlantic (particularly off Norway and the United Kingdom) between 3 and 23 May, the ‘ASD/FS25’ exercise was designed to improve NATO combined and collective warfighting capabilities, combat credibility, readiness, and interoperability, including through a focus on live-firing demonstrations against subsonic, supersonic, and ballistic targets across multiple domains, the statement said.
“‘ASD/FS25’ allowed participants to improve their warfighting readiness and strengthen relationships with allies in the region,” Vice Admiral JT Anderson, Commander US 6th Fleet and STRIKFORNATO, said in the statement. “Together, we have once again proven our ability to protect NATO citizens and territory and our combat forces at sea, and that our alliance remains ready to face the challenges of today and tomorrow.”
In total, more than 17 ships and 26 aircraft were involved, along with significant levels of ground-based operational support, all working under NATO command and control (C2) structures, planning, and co-ordination, while sharing common tactical pictures and maritime situational awareness (MSA). Participation was drawn from 11 countries – Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
More than 45 separate missile and gun engagement activities were conducted against ballistic and cruise missile targets resembling the subsonic and supersonic threats present in the real-world operating environment, Captain Michael Dwan – a US Navy (USN) officer posted as Commander Task Group 154.64 and STRIKFORNATO’s US Maritime Ballistic Missile Defense Assets Advisor – said, in the statement. Conducting such demonstrative activity in a combined force context is central to combat credibility and deterrence, Capt Dwan explained.
Two of the ships participating in the live-firing demonstrations were the USN Arleigh Burke-class, Aegis-capable, guided-missile destroyers USS Thomas Hudner and USS Bulkeley. Thomas Hudner successfully engaged a short-range ballistic missile target using a Raytheon Standard Missile-6 (SM-6) weapon; Bulkeley successfully used an SM-3 against a medium-range ballistic missile target. Such engagements demonstrated capability lethality, and its role in sending messages to alliance adversaries by demonstrating credible combat capability, a separate US Naval Forces Europe statement said on 21st May.
‘ASD/FS25’ is a biennial exercise hosted by US 6th Fleet and executed by STRIKFORNATO.
