British fighters provide air support in Norway war games

Royal Air Force Typhoon jets from IX(B) Squadron have been conducting close air support missions in Norway’s High North as part of Exercise Hillstream, the UK Defence Journal understands.

The exercise, running from 18 September to 26 October 2025, forms part of the wider multinational Exercise Tarassis, a large-scale rehearsal of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) Response Options designed to test rapid deployment and coordination between northern European allies.

According to the Ministry of Defence, the Typhoon element of Hillstream took place from 7 to 9 October at Evenes Air Station in northern Norway, where the RAF aircraft supported 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines during an amphibious assault demonstration. The drills were intended to replicate how air and ground components of the JEF could integrate during a real crisis in the High North or Baltic region.

The deployment from RAF Lossiemouth demonstrated the ability of UK air power to operate at high readiness in Arctic conditions, ensuring that British forces can respond to emerging threats, humanitarian emergencies, or security challenges across the Euro-Atlantic area.

Alongside IX(B) Squadron and 3 Commando Brigade, the exercise involved 40 Commando and the Maritime Task Group, with naval and air elements coordinating to simulate a joint response to hostile activity in northern waters.

Exercise Tarassis, of which Hillstream forms one component, is the most ambitious live activity undertaken by the Joint Expeditionary Force since its creation at the 2014 NATO summit. Stretching from the Arctic Circle to the Baltic Sea, it involves thousands of personnel, dozens of ships and aircraft, and coordinated operations across land, sea, air, and cyber domains.