NATO aircraft hold first joint exercise in Iceland

According to a VNA reporter in Brussels, on February 3, fighter jets from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and its partners conducted joint exercises for the first time in the skies over Iceland.

Illustrative photo. (Source: RIA Novosti)

Participating in the exercise called Iceland Air Meet 2014 (IAM2014) are several NATO member countries such as host Iceland, Norway, the Netherlands, the United States and partners Finland and Sweden with the support of NATO's Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS).

Norway, Finland and Sweden provided fighter jets and support aircraft. The US and the Netherlands provided aerial refueling, and Iceland assisted with search and rescue.

IAM2014 includes air combat training between different aircraft types, air superiority operations, as well as high value aircraft attack and defense operations.

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said this was a new step in cooperation between NATO and Finland and Sweden. The exercise aims to enhance training activities with non-member countries within the framework of the Nordic Defense Cooperation Organization (NORDEFCO).

Mr. Rasmussen emphasized that this is an opportunity for ground control and air traffic control teams to be better trained and accumulate more experience to deploy and coordinate operations in the future./.

According to VNA