NORTH ATLANTIC - Standing NATO Maritime Group One (SNMG1) composed by the U.S. flagship, the guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely, British frigate HMS Westminster, and Turkish frigate TCG Gokova concluded their participation in the annual Norwegian-led anti-submarine exercise Dynamic Mongoose (DYMON) 2019 on July 12, 2019.

 

Under the command of Rear Admiral Edward Cashman (USA N) NATO units completed an intense and challenging training exercise with surface ships, maritime patrol aircraft, helicopters and submarines in the North Atlantic, off the coast of Andenes, Norway.

 

DYMON 2019 was designed to enhance Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) of the participating Allied nations in a challenging environment due to the unpredictable sea state and weather conditions in this region. The ASW capabilities of these units were put to the test in this challenging environment which provided beneficial experience and knowledge while simultaneously contributing to increased interoperability among NATO Allies and demonstrating NATO’s capabilities, capacities and determination to defend Allies.

 

"The exercise planners and the team at Submarines NATO did an excellent job designing the exercise for us to operate in multiple different environments, requiring us to constantly assess and evaluate our operating area, highlighting the diversity of NATO Maritime capabilities and interoperability,” said Rear Admiral Cashman, Commander of Standing NATO Maritime Group One. "They designed the exercise in such a way that challenges us as the task group staff, and the units from the stand point of needing to understand the various environmental conditions in the ocean as well as needing to understand the adversary and how the submarines are going to use that environment to their advantage."

 

SNMG1 is one of four standing maritime task groups composed of ships from various Allied countries. These task groups form the core maritime capability of NATO’s Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF). They provide a continuous maritime capability to execute NATO missions across the spectrum of operations, demonstrate solidarity, and strengthen diplomatic and professional links among Allied naval forces.