Standing NRF Maritime Group 1
Encyclopedia
is one of NATO's standing maritime
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
Immediate Reaction Forces. Prior to 1 January 2005 it was known as Standing Naval Force Atlantic (STANAVFORLANT). The group was also briefly called the Standing NATO Response Force Maritime Group One.
SNMG1 consists of 4 to 6 destroyers and frigates, with the Royal Canadian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
, the Deutsche Marine (German Navy), the Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy), the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
(UK), and the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
each contributing 1 ship on a permanent basis. These are joined periodically by ships from Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. The force operates, trains and exercises as a group, providing day-to-day verification of current NATO maritime procedures, tactics and effectiveness.
Ships are usually attached to the force for up to six months, on a rotating basis. Units of one nation do not necessarily relieve ships of the same nation. The force commander and the staff are appointed for one year, with the force commander rotating among the participating nations. Since January 25th, 2010, the force is under the command of Commodore Christian Rune flying his flag in the Danish Flexible Command Ship HDMS Esbern Snare (L17)
HDMS Esbern Snare (L17)
HDMS Esbern Snare is an support ship, and is along with her sister ship, the HDMS Absalon , the largest combat vessel currently commissioned in the Royal Danish Navy....
.
Force
The ships in the force are: FlagshipFlagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
, Etna an Etna class auxiliary ship Euro a Méndez Núñez a F100 class
Álvaro de Bazán class frigate
The Álvaro de Bazán class are a new class of Aegis combat system-equipped air defense frigates entering service with the Spanish Navy...
frigate
Operations
In peacetime, the force exercises primarily in the eastern Atlantic. Allied Command Operations (ACO) has operational command of the force, and the Commander Allied Maritime Component Command NorthwoodCommander-in-Chief Fleet
Commander-in-Chief Fleet is the admiral responsible for the operation, resourcing and training of the ships, submarines and aircraft, and personnel, of the British Royal Navy...
administers the force while in the Eastern Atlantic. ACO delegates operational control to the area commander where the force is operating.
History
Established in January 1968, STANAVFORLANT was under the operational control of Supreme Allied Commander AtlanticSupreme Allied Commander Atlantic
The Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic was one of two supreme commanders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation , the other being the Supreme Allied Commander Europe . The SACLANT led Allied Command Atlantic, based at Norfolk, Virginia...
until that command was decommissioned in 2003. Due to the resulting NATO realignment, STANAVFORLANT fell under the operational control of ACO.
In September 2007, SNMG1 was in the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
bound for Suez
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
to complete a circumnavigation
Circumnavigation
Circumnavigation – literally, "navigation of a circumference" – refers to travelling all the way around an island, a continent, or the entire planet Earth.- Global circumnavigation :...
of Africa when the Jabal al-Tair
Jabal al-Tair Island
Jabal al-Tair Island is a roughly oval volcanic island northwest of the constricted Bab al-Mandab passage at the mouth of the Red Sea, about half way between Yemen and Eritrea...
volcano erupted. SNMG1 ships assisted the Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
i coast guard in the recovery of their military personnel stationed on the island. http://www.nato.int/docu/pr/2007/p07-097e.html
Since 2009, SNMG1 has been operational in the Gulf of Aden
Gulf of Aden
The Gulf of Aden is located in the Arabian Sea between Yemen, on the south coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and Somalia in the Horn of Africa. In the northwest, it connects with the Red Sea through the Bab-el-Mandeb strait, which is about 20 miles wide....
supporting NATO's Operation Ocean Shield, anti-piracy mission.
See also
- Standing NATO Maritime Group 2
- Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1
- Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 2