Open Spirit 2016 participants were able to utilize their minehunting skills as they destroyed mines and other sea obstacles which posed a threat to Baltic Sea shipping lanes for decades.
The international NATO maneuver which took place off Klaipeda, Lithuania concluded May 27.
Minehunting units have scanned 185 square kilometers of seafloor and identified 912 objects during the active phase of the drill. Of the objects found, 18 were identified as explosive munition, more specifically, 15 mines and three torpedoes.
Additionally, two rocket pieces and 34 mine anchors as well as three practice mines and three shipwrecks from the period of the two world wars were found.
Open Spirit 2016 was attended by units from Lithuania, Estonia, Canada, Latvia, Norway, Poland, Great Britain and USA, led by the U.S. Navy Commander Gareth Healy.
Another participating unit was the Standing NATO Mine Counter Measures Group 1 (SNMCMG 1) commanded by German Navy Frigate Captain Martin Schwarz.