NATO began Neptune Strike 26-4 on Friday, marking the fourth and final iteration of the annual exercise this year. The multinational drills involve 17 member nations and span operations across the Mediterranean, Baltic and North Atlantic regions through November 5. More than 20 ships and 40 aircraft are scheduled to conduct approximately 50 coordinated activities, including carrier strike group operations, submarine exercises and aerial refueling missions.

The exercise centers on enhancing NATO’s ability to command multinational carrier strike groups and expeditionary units. U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Allied Forces Southern Command oversees the operation, which integrates maritime strike capabilities with air, land and amphibious forces under STRIKFORNATO leadership. Finnish Navy photo

The United Kingdom’s Carrier Strike Group is conducting northern European and High North operations using HMS Prince of Wales (R09), HMS Dauntless (D33) and HNoMS Fridtjof Nansen (F310). The group departed Portsmouth on Sunday to commence the second phase of Operation Firecrest, with Prince of Wales having previously operated in the Norwegian Sea and deployed F-35B aircraft for Baltic Sea missions. Finnish Navy news release confirms that British F-35Bs and French Rafales performed simulated air-to-ground firings while Finnish surface-to-surface missile units conducted coordinated exercises in the Gulf of Finland.

Italy’s Carrier Strike Group is participating from the Mediterranean, featuring ITS Cavour (CVH-550) with embarked F-35B and AV-8B aircraft. The Italian group is simultaneously leading Mare Aperto 2026, the navy’s largest operational exercise running through Sunday. Cavour conducted long-range strike drills on October 20 with French Air Force MRTT tankers providing aerial refueling.

Turkey’s Anadolu Naval Task Group is operating in the Adriatic and Ionian Seas, deploying the drone carrier TCG Anadolu (L400) with three TB-3 UAVs and a Marine battalion landing force. The group demonstrated amphibious landing capabilities off Albania’s coast on October 19. Standing NATO Maritime Group 1, led by German fleet oiler FGS Berlin (A1411) and including Canadian and Portuguese vessels, will operate in the Atlantic and Baltic regions, while Group 2 units including Spanish and Turkish minehunters will work in Mediterranean waters.

The exercise series tests NATO’s collective defense posture through integrated maritime strike operations across all three of the Alliance’s Joint Operations Areas. Participants include Albania, Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom alongside the United States.