Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Trey Hutcheson | A combat rubber raiding craft (CRRC) descends from an MC-130J Commando II assigned to...... read more read more
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Special Operations Command North successfully wrapped up Arctic Edge 25 (AE25), a NORAD and U.S. Northern Command–led homeland defense exercise spanning Alaska from Aug. 1–31, 2025. AE25 showcased integration of multi-domain capabilities, innovative logistics, and joint interoperability throughout one of the world’s most challenging environments.
SOCNORTH leveraged AE25 to test its ability to deploy, operate and conduct command and control of special operations elements in extreme Arctic conditions, while also strengthening international and interagency partnerships.
“Arctic Edge 25 proved that our forces can operate, sustain and fight in one of the harshest environments in the world,” said U.S. Army Col. Matthew Tucker, SOCNORTH Commander. “More importantly, it demonstrated the strength of our partnerships across services, allies and agencies who together ensure we are ready to defend the homeland.”
In Nome, U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Security Response Team-West operators conducted a visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) evolution aboard the NOAA Ship Fairweather (S 220) in coordination with U.S. East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare Operators (SEALs). Supported by the USCGC Waesche (WMSL 751) and Over-the-Horizon boats including Long Range Interceptors, the training honed maritime domain awareness and joint coordination in contested Arctic waters.
At Cold Bay, the 27th Special Operations Wing established a forward arming and refueling point (FARP) to support Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II operations. MC-130J Commando II aircraft delivered fuel for ground operations and KC-130J Hercules provided aerial refueling, demonstrating Agile Combat Employment and extending operational reach in austere environments.
“The FARP in Cold Bay showed how the F-35B’s expeditionary design allows us to land, refuel, and get back in the fight from locations other aircraft can’t,” said U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Michael “Champ” Frazer, VMFA-533 operations officer. “That flexibility gives commanders more options to project power and respond in real-world scenarios.”
Near Kotzebue, U.S. East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare Operators (SEALs) executed a military free fall and Combat Rubber Raiding Craft (CRRC) insertion, linking reconnaissance with Marine Corps High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) precision fires. The operation integrated prolonged field care and casualty evacuation, culminating in an in-flight CASEVAC aboard a C-146A Wolfhound aircraft assigned to the 492nd Special Operations Wing, alongside personnel from the 5th Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Border Patrol Tactical Unit personnel and Air Force medical teams.
SOCNORTH also advanced innovation in Tok, executing a GPS-denied aerial resupply to validate sustainment under denied navigation conditions. With Allied observers present, SOCNORTH, in coordination with DoD partners, including Operational Energy-Innovation and Program Executive Office for Combat Support and Combat Service Support, conducted experimentation of a long-range precision aerial delivery system (LRPADS) providing critical insight into future Arctic logistics, including how the military can sustain operations in environments where global positioning systems are denied or disrupted.
Our Operational Energy-Innovation Office sponsors purposeful experiments like LRPADS to accelerate innovative capabilities in the operational energy domain, and transition them to the warfighter,” said Jon Lazar, program lead of the Operational Energy Prototyping Fund. “LRPADS adds leap-ahead capability to the war-tested JPADS by increasing range by a factor of ten and enabling it to work in a GPS-denied environment.”
Arctic Edge 25 reaffirmed the commitment of U.S. and allied forces to integrate cyber, maritime, land and air capabilities within a unified homeland defense framework. Training in Alaska’s demanding environment strengthened readiness, enhanced interoperability, and shaped scalable tactics for future Arctic operations.
“Every evolution of Arctic Edge strengthens our ability to deter threats and respond decisively in the high north,” said Tucker. “The lessons we take from AE25 ensure that our joint and combined forces remain resilient, agile and ready to defend the homeland in the most demanding conditions.”
SOCNORTH plans, coordinates, and conducts special operations in collaboration with mission partners, to assure allies and partners, compete below the level of armed conflict, deter conventional and irregular threats, and set conditions to execute contingency operations to defend the United States and its interests.
| Date Taken: | 09.16.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.16.2025 11:48 |
| Story ID: | 548281 |
| Location: | ANCHORAGE, ALASKA, US |
| Web Views: | 95 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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