The first 2023 edition of the Open Sea exercise, the main training cycle of the Italian Navy, organized and conducted by the Command in Chief of the Naval Squadron, began on April 13th, which will involve forces and personnel from 23 nations (12 NATO countries and 11 Partners), 41 naval units including ships and submarines, as well as Naval Aviation aircraft and helicopters, amphibious departments of the San Marco Marine Brigade, commandos and divers of COMSUBIN, naval vehicles and aircraft of the Corps of the Port Authorities, with the addition of vehicles and personnel of the Army, Air Force, Carabinieri and Guardia di Finanza. A total of about 6,000 soldiers involved together with civilian personnel from various universities and research centers.
The complex and articulated training scenario of the “Open Sea” 2023-1 will be developed in the traditional multidimensional context, with the involvement of air and land assets, of the underwater dimensions, all interconnected through the tools and networks offered by the cyber and space domains. “We will test our Maritime Instrument to verify its readiness, efficiency, projectability, long-term sustainability, balance, interoperability and ability to generate multi-domain effects at a strategic, operational and tactical level” said Admiral Aurelio De Carolis, Commander in Chief of the Naval Squadron.
The Forces of the Naval Squadron, which will be exercised until next May 6 together with those of the Atlantic Alliance and other partner Navies, will operate in the maritime spaces between the Adriatic, the Ionian, the Tyrrhenian Sea, the Strait of Sicily and the Sea of Sardinia, including both the high seas and coastal areas and the portions of surrounding territory and the related overlying airspaces.
The forces in the field – under the guidance of the staff of the various Naval Divisions, the San Marco Marine Brigade and the Commands of the Specialized Components of the Navy – will engage in high-realism simulations, fight against conventional and asymmetric threats, raids on coastal sites of interest, maritime security exercises, control and reclamation of the seabed, prevention and contrast of illicit trafficking. As part of the dual tasks of the Armed Forces, training activities will also be conducted to protect the maritime environment and rescue populations affected by natural disasters with the collaboration of Civil Protection personnel.
During the exercise, a training activity focused on the cybernetic context called Chironex 23-1 is scheduled.
In continuity with previous editions, also in this Open Sea will consolidate the participation of operators and assets of the “Pozzuolo del Friuli” Brigade of the Army (AAV7 and Armored Centauro) which, with the San Marco Marine Brigade, constitute the National Capacity of Projection from the Sea (CNPM), and the participation of several aircraft of the Air Force, including CAEW G550 aircraft, Eurofighter and F-35 fighters as well as KC767A in-flight refueling assets.
The short take-off and vertical landing variant of the F35 (the “B” version), supplied to the Navy Air Forces and the Air Force, will operate from Nave Cavour, in close cooperation with the other embarked aircraft and fully integrated into the daily flight cycles programmed by the coordination cell of air operations at sea, embarked on the aircraft carrier.
On board the units of the Naval Squadron there will also be over 70 university students, including students and accompanying teachers, fully integrated within the embarked staff, according to their course of study. The involvement of students is an expression of the tradition that sees the Navy promoting the progress of a culture of defense and maritime that makes university education a strategic element on the national scene.
14 universities involved in this first edition of Mare Aperto 2023: the University of Bari, the University Alma Mater Studiorum of Bologna, the University of Genoa, the State University of Milan, the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart of Milan, the Polytechnic of Milan, the Free University of Languages and Communication of Milan (IULM), the Federico II University of Naples, the Sant’Anna University of Pisa, the La Sapienza University of Rome, the Free International University of Social Studies (LUISS) of Rome, the University for Foreigners of Siena, the University of Trieste and the University of Tuscia. Representatives of the Corps of Volunteer Nurses of the Italian Red Cross, of Ce.S.I. will also take part in the exercise. (Centre for International Studies), the Centre for Geopolitics and Maritime Strategy (CESMAR), Confitarma, Assarmatori.
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