On April 29 and May 6, French Navy ships based in Brest took part in the first phase of the Wildfire anti-drone training exercise taking place in the Atlantic.
Organised by the training division of the Naval Action Force (FAN) in Brest, this tactical training aimed to prepare French Navy units based in Brest for the fight against surface and air drones, threats they could face during their next operational deployments.
For this first phase, the navy deployed the multi-mission frigates Brittany and Auvergne and the deep-sea patrol vessel Lieutenant Jacoubet on April 29, and Lieutenant Jacoubet and a Caïman marine helicopter on May 6.
"The ships have thus faced assaults and swarms of drones, implemented by the Directorate General of Armaments (DGA)," said the French Navy.
"The ships, not knowing either the scenario or the threats, had to call on the operational creativity of the sailors, their expertise and their tactical thinking."
"This type of exercise makes it possible to test asymmetric threat organisations in the most realistic context possible. The implementation of different tactics and numerous anti-drone equipment made it possible to capitalize on feedback that will then be used by the Naval Action Force Center of Expertise (CENTEX FAN)."