Exercise Joint Warrior JW 131 2013 starts soon

The twice yearly military exercises of Joint Warrior are due to begin in various area in and around Scotland, on land and sea, are due to begin soon, and always generate interest in those keen to pop out and grab some pics of the participants, usually as they gather in the Firth of Clyde, but also as they move around the country.

The exercises usually start with the maritime element in April, and the notification is given below.

The second part of the exercise will take place in October.

Joint Warrior (JW) 131, will take place from 15 until 29 April 2013 and will comprise of a programme of exercises conducted by land forces, warships, submarines and aircraft across the UK. The maritime element (15 until 25 April) is focussed in the offshore and coastal waters to the north east, north and north west of Scotland.

See the note issued by the Joint Tactical Exercise Planning Staff…

JTEPS JW131 18 March 2013 JOINT WARRIOR 131 SUBMARINE, MINEWARFARE, LIVE FIRING AND DENIAL OF GPS TRAINING ACTIVITY:

JW112 Brief to FV Ferry – 20130301-JW131-Brief-for-fishing-vessels-and-ferries-U-SOSM.pdf  

The fun could be deemed to have started already, as Loch Striven has just seen some exercises have just taken place off the Isle of Bute:

Zak caught HMS Brocklesby on Wednesday, one of eight Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessels based in Portsmouth (launched in 1982 and commissioned 13 months later), which had been joined by  HMS Pembroke, a Sandown-class minehunter based at HMNB Clyde at Faslane, for an exercise with a Dassault jet in the area off Ardbeg and Port Bannatyne, where the sound of gunfire caught folk’s attention (seems the local paper went for a look, but was way behind ‘our’ favourite photographer):

Dassault Falcon 20E – G-FRAD vs minesweepers – © Zak – Click image for original

Smoky minesweeper – HMS Brocklesby – © Zak – Click image for original

Best part of a week behind SeSco, the media has finally woken up and mentioned JW!

More than 5,000 UK personnel are to take part in the largest military exercise in Europe this year, the MoD has said.

Exercise Joint Warrior will test their ability to work together with the forces of nine other countries.

It will take place across Scotland from 15 to 29 April and will involve 5,250 UK military personnel.

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said the exercise will ensure the forces are prepared “to meet any challenge”.

“They give us the chance to test the way the different services and different nations work together, something that is vital in a multilateral world,” he added.

The exercise will involve 13,000 military personnel in total, including forces from Sweden, Germany, Brazil and the US.

There will be an airborne assault and amphibious landings as well as training in counter-insurgency, counter-piracy and interstate war.

49 ships from various navies as well as up to 40 aircraft will be involved, including RAF Tornados and Typhoons.

The Royal Marine Commandos will make a landing at Barry Buddon training camp in Angus, near Dundee.

Further activities will take place near Stranraer, Dumfries and Galloway, where all nearby residents have been informed and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) expects it will cause “no real disruption”.

Live ammunition will be used in certain exercises, on cleared ranges where it poses no risk.

Via UK deploying 5,250 personnel for Exercise Joint Warrior (April 11, 2013.)