The Royal Navy and Royal Marine of the United Kingdom concluded a true “tour de force” during Cold Response 2022. Norway undertook its most extensive defense exercise since the Cold Wаr, during which hundreds of warships, fighter aircraft, helicopters, submarines, snowmobiles, and smaller vessels competed to demonstrate their prowess in the arduous Arctic environment.

This recent Arctic exercise on land, water, and in the air was an astounding exhibition of power. The first effective operation of one of its fifth-generation aircraft carriers in Arctic conditions constituted one of the Royal Navy’s most significant achievements.

The Navy’s largest warship, HMS Prince of Wales, one of the new Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers, made its maiden voyage to the far north, endured extremely low temperatures, and operated effectively with F-35B fighter jets, Sea Stallion helicopters, and the distinctive Osprey MV22 tiltrotor.

Additionally, the Wildcat helicopters of the Royal Navy made their inaugural land operation in support of the 847 Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Marines. As is customary, the formidable Seaspray radar was employed to monitor land-based targets rather than hоstile vessels.

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Additionally, smaller teams comprising the Surveillance and Reconnaissance Squadron were deployed from a hunter-kιller submarine aboard Inflatable Raiding Crafts (IRCs) as a component of the exercise. To gain access to more inaccessible regions, the Norwegian military utilized larger and quicker vessels.

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Four Astute class modern nucleаr submarines of the Royal Navy are presently operational. These 7400-ton, 318-foot-tall (97-meter-tall) hunter-killers are outfitted with nucleаr reactors that enable them to extend their range considerably.

Along the Norwegian littoral, Oversnow Reconnaissance Vehicles (OSRVs), which were essentially military snowmobiles, were tasked with identifying hazards on the ground during reconnaissance missions. Moreover, the Royal Marines Mountain Leaders tested these animals in the untamed wilderness during live-fire exercises in which speed and coordination were crucial.

Cold Response 2022 was a genuinely memorable defense exercise due to the remarkable collaboration of so many air, land, and marine vehicles in the harsh Arctic environment.