The development of the security situation in the world, not least in the Baltic Sea region, is marked by volatility and great uncertainty.
This situation requires that Sweden’s military defence has available, jointly exercised units, a high level of readiness and the capacity to solve complex tasks, individually and together. That is why an unannounced operational readiness check was conducted last week, with the purpose of testing the capability for joint anti-surface warfare.
"To Sweden, with our long coastline, a key capability is to prevent an adversary from landing on our shores. Together with naval and air force units, we have conducted joint anti- surface warfare using anti-ship missile system 15, deputy operational chief as well as head of the readiness control", Major General Urban Molin, says.
The navy and the air force fought jointly, coordinated in time and space from the ground, at sea and from the air against naval surface targets.
"Long-range coordinated fire from three different types of platforms – corvettes, heavy anti-ship missile systems and fighter aircraft – against a common surface target is very complex, and that is why these exercises are vital", Major General Urban Molin continues.
Planning ahead of the Aurora 20 exercise involved various sub-exercises, anti-surface warfare being one. Due to the corona pandemic, the Swedish Armed Forces chose to postpone Aurora 20, however, some exercises were still deemed necessary to conduct in order to maintain readiness and to allow conscript soldiers and seamen to conclude their training.
The principal tasks of the Swedish Armed Forces are to ensure Sweden is secure, and to defend the country against armed attacks. A high level of readiness is required in order to be able to prevent, meet and manage an armed attack. Therefore, regular readiness checks are a vital part of the Armed Forces’ increasing capability, and are also proof that the Swedish Armed Forces is capable of solving their tasks.
"I am very happy with the way our units performed during the readiness check, on short notice. My conclusion is that we have confirmed our capability to perform joint anti-surface warfare. And we were able to do this while simultaneously providing extensive assistance to the community during this difficult time caused by the corona pandemic", Major General Urban Molin concludes.