Synopsis
An activity aimed at testing the combined capacity of NATO air and naval power has just wrapped up following two weeks of training. Neptune Strike, a multi-domain exercise, ran from 14 to 28 October 2022. Seventy aircraft of various types, 20 ships and around 5,000 personnel from 26 NATO Allies and partners took part in the exercise.
Neptune Strike tested NATO’s maritime warfare capabilities and the Alliance’s cohesion in a dynamic environment for both Air and Sea elements. Neptune Strike also tested NATO's ability to combat potential threats caused by the malicious use of drones. On a training site on the northwest coast of Denmark, the Danish Armed Forces practised launching a Banshee 600 drone. The Banshee 600 is a custom-built drone designed specifically for air defence simulated training.
This footage includes shots of the drone taking to the skies with soundbites from Commodore Carsten Fjord-Larsen, Acting Commander of the Royal Danish Navy, and Brigadier General Karsten Fledelius Jensen, Deputy Commander of Air Command Denmark, Royal Danish Air Force.
Transcript
---SHOTLIST—
(00:00) VARIOUS SHOTS - BANSHEE 600, AN AERIAL TARGET DRONE, TAKES OFF FROM A HERCULES LAUNCHER.
(00:25) WIDE SHOT – TWO US NAVY F-18s FLYING IN TANDEM
(00:29) VARIOUS SHOTS - BANSHEE 600 CONDUCTS FLY-PAST BEFORE LAUNCHING PARACHUTE
(01:01) VARIOUS SHOTS – DANISH NAVAL PERSONNEL WORKING INSIDE GROUND CONTROL STATION
(01:36) VARIOUS SHOTS (MUTE) - INSIDE BANSHEE 600 STORAGE, MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR FACILITY
(01:42) VARIOUS SHOTS - DANISH NAVAL COMMANDER OBSERVES THROUGH 15 X 4 NAVAL BINOCULARS
(01:53) VARIOUS SHOTS - DANISH NAVAL PERSONNEL OBSERVE RADAR ON THE COMPUTER
(02:07) VARIOUS SHOTS - DANISH SAILOR CONDUCTS BANSHEE 600 PRE-FLIGHT CHECKS
(02:26) WIDE SHOT – DANISH NAVAL PERSONNEL CONDUCT PRE-LAUNCH CHECKS OF HERCULES PNEUMATIC LAUNCHER
(02:30) VARIOUS SHOTS - DANISH NAVAL PERSONNEL CONDUCT PRE-FLIGHT CHECKS
(02:50) WIDE SHOT - DANISH NAVAL PERSONNEL STOOD BY THE LAUNCH CONTROL PANEL
(02:55) VARIOUS SHOTS - DANISH TROOPS CONDUCT PRE-FLIGHT CHECKS OF BANSHEE 600 AERIAL TARGET
(03:14) VARIOUS SHOTS - DANISH TROOPS USE JUSSI CRANE TO LIFT THE BANSHEE 600 AERIAL TARGET ONTO THE HERCULES PNEUMATIC LAUNCHER
(03:35) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) COMMODORE CARSTEN FJORD-LARSEN, ACTING COMMANDER OF THE ROYAL DANISH NAVY.
“Neptune Strike illustrates the incredible mobility, flexibility and reach of naval power and air power. And it is manifest in the ability to project force from the naval arena into another naval arena.”
(03:58) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) BRIGADIER GENERAL KARSTEN FLEDELIUS JENSEN, DEPUTY COMMANDER, AIR COMMAND DENMARK, ROYAL DANISH AIR FORCE.
“So the drone threat comes in different shapes. One being the civilian drone that the kid that's playing with a drone that can pose a threat to civil air traffic or to military air traffic. So we need to do something or we need to be aware of that. But it also, there are also more dangerous ways, even more dangerous ways of a drone threat, one being the ability for somebody to conduct espionage or ISR [intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance], if you will, with drones and all the way to dropping weapons on you.”
(04:38) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) BRIGADIER GENERAL KARSTEN FLEDELIUS JENSEN, DEPUTY COMMANDER, AIR COMMAND DENMARK, ROYAL DANISH AIR FORCE.
“To combat a bigger drone you need kinetic force, typically. And that would be either from ground or from the air typically, or from a surface vessel. In this case, it's an F-18. It's a capable aircraft able to carry a lot of weapons, offensive and defensive weapons, and it is capable of operating from an aircraft carrier. So it has strategic reach by the carrier itself and has strategic and operational reach by the ability to air-to-air refuel and it has tactical capabilities with the weapons it carries.”
(05:18) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) COMMODORE CARSTEN FJORD-LARSEN, ACTING COMMANDER OF THE ROYAL DANISH NAVY.
“Recent events in Ukraine has more than ever proved that the threat from the air is not just fighters or strategic bombers, it is down to commercial drones of small sizes that potentially can inflict damage to much larger units than we have seen before. Therefore, the preparation of naval power and air power must take into consideration that the span of threats is evolving and increasing vis-a-vis just five or ten years ago.”
(06:00) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) COMMODORE CARSTEN FJORD-LARSEN, ACTING COMMANDER OF THE ROYAL DANISH NAVY.
“In order to be able to counter threats from both drones and from larger aircraft, we need a strong ISR [intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance] within NATO. We need a strong early-warning system, and we need capable effectors that can effectively diminish the threat, give us knowledge of the threat and if need be, fight the threat from small drones to offensive fighter bombers.”
(06:37) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) COMMODORE CARSTEN FJORD-LARSEN, ACTING COMMANDER OF THE ROYAL DANISH NAVY.
“The ability to project power from the Mediterranean to the Baltic Sea is essential in order to emphasise credible deterrence, defence and assurance. As head of the Danish Navy, it is very comforting to know that our Allies, in cooperation with us, have the ability to project power across theatres and across domains. It is essential to Alliance cohesion, interoperability and our ability to produce defence and deterrence.”
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