The British Army, Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force have conducted their largest combined amphibious exercise in years in Cyprus.
The Royal Marines-led exercise in the Eastern Mediterranean served as a rehearsal for Joint Theatre Entry, which involves “the landing of different military elements from air, land, and sea into a potentially hostile region.”
During the drill, Arbroath-based 45 Marine Commandos secured the Cyprus coastline while the British Army’s Royal Logistic Corps unloaded equipment from cargo ship Hurst Point. A Royal Navy Puma drone provided surveillance.
The joint force also simulated various scenarios, including war fighting, disaster relief, and humanitarian aid operations.
Littoral Response Group North
Lieutenant Colonel Paul Timmins said the exercise aimed at testing the Littoral Response Group North’s operational capabilities, such as how quickly “it is able to come together, hit a coastline, and push forward inland from a beachhead.”
Littoral Response Group North was designed to deploy to places strategically important to the UK, particularly within Europe.
“We have had the opportunity to develop the Royal Navy’s Littoral Strike capability further, allowing us to deliver joint combined amphibious operations more effectively,” Timmins said.
“The landing craft and helicopters of the Littoral Response Group North task group were a key part of supporting the Army and RAF in exercising this key UK capability,” Task Group Commander Captain Simon Kelly said.
After the joint exercise, UK’s amphibious flagship HMS Albion left for the southern coast city or Limassol in Cyprus for a defense engagement activity.