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| Littoral Response Group | |
|---|---|
| Unit name | Littoral Response Group |
| Dates | 2019–present |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | Royal Navy |
| Role | Amphibious and littoral operations |
| Command structure | Royal Navy Fleet |
| Garrison | Various UK naval bases |
Littoral Response Group
The Littoral Response Group is a Royal Navy formation established to provide highly mobile amphibious strike, maritime security, and crisis response in littoral zones. It integrates elements from the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Fleet Air Arm, and supporting logistic units to operate from aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships, Royal Fleet Auxiliary, and allied ports. The Group contributes to United Kingdom commitments with expeditionary capability for operations alongside NATO, United States Navy, European Union External Action Service, and regional partners.
The formation was created to deliver rapid amphibious warfare and littoral strike options using small, scalable forces drawn from the 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines, Portsmouth Command, and carrier strike elements. Its purpose encompasses crisis response, non-combatant evacuation operations involving embassies such as British Embassy, Baghdad or British Embassy, Kabul, maritime interdiction alongside task forces like Combined Task Force 150, and assurance missions linked to treaties such as the North Atlantic Treaty. The Group supports deterrence in areas proximate to strategic chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz, Gibraltar, and the Bab-el-Mandeb.
Origins trace to doctrinal shifts after operations such as Operation Telic and Operation Herrick, and lessons from the Falklands War and Iraq War. The concept matured during the 2010s alongside programs like the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier project and the Future Commando Force initiative within Defence Equipment and Support. Its formal establishment followed announcements in Defence White Papers influenced by events including the Crimea Crisis and ISIS insurgency. Exercises such as Joint Warrior, Exercise Cold Response, and Baltops informed capability development, while procurement decisions linked to the Type 31 frigate and Bay-class landing ship dock shaped force architecture.
The Group typically comprises a command element from Headquarters Standing Joint Command, an amphibious task unit drawn from 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines and 47 Commando (Raiding Group) Royal Marines, aviation from the Fleet Air Arm (including Merlin HM2 and Wildcat HMA2), and logistic support from the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and Ministry of Defence Police. Ships rotate from classes such as HMS Albion, HMS Bulwark, Bay-class landing ship dock, and escorts like Type 45 destroyer and Type 23 frigate. Command relationships may fall under Commander United Kingdom Maritime Forces or an assigned joint force commander reported to Permanent Joint Headquarters.
The Group fields capabilities for littoral strike, heliborne insertion, and amphibious assaults using platforms and systems including Commando 90 craft, Ridgeback vehicles, and landing craft utility from Landing Craft Air Cushion derivatives. Aviation assets include AgustaWestland AW101 derivatives, Boeing Chinook for heavy lift, and unmanned systems drawn from projects like Watchkeeper. Weapons and sensors integrate Phalanx CIWS, Sea Ceptor missile systems aboard escorts, and electronic warfare suites similar to those on HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08). Medical and logistic sustainment capabilities derive from hospital ship concepts such as RFA Argus and support vessels managed by Serco Group and Babcock International contractors.
Deployments have included forward presence patrols in the Mediterranean Sea, reassurance activities in the Baltic Sea, and expeditionary rotations to the Gulf of Aden combating piracy alongside Operation Atalanta and Combined Maritime Forces. The Group participated in exercises linked to regional contingencies near Horn of Africa and partnered operations with forces from United States Marine Corps, French Navy, Royal Netherlands Navy, Spanish Navy, and Italian Navy. Notable operations drew on lessons from Operation Atalanta, Operation Shader, and humanitarian responses similar to Hurricane Irma relief.
Training is coordinated via establishments such as Commando Training Centre Royal Marines, United Kingdom Amphibious Assault School, and joint facilities at Salisbury Plain and CTCRM Lympstone. Doctrine references include concepts promulgated by NATO Allied Joint Doctrine, the UK Defence Doctrine, and publications from Royal United Services Institute. Specialist training involves amphibious raids, urban littoral operations, and interoperability protocols used in Exercise Steel Knight and Exercise Cougar. Simulation and live-fire training utilize ranges like Hebrides Range and airspace coordinated with RAF Lossiemouth.
The Group routinely undertakes multinational exercises to enhance interoperability with partners in frameworks such as NATO Allied Maritime Command, Combined Joint Expeditionary Force with the French Armed Forces, and bilateral links with the United States European Command. Regular maneuvers include Exercise Dynamic Manta, Exercise Trident Juncture, Exercise Joint Warrior, and regional drills with the Royal Norwegian Navy and German Navy. Cooperation extends to defense industry partners including BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce Holdings, and Lockheed Martin for platform sustainment and capability development.
Category:Royal Navy formations Category:Amphibious warfare units Category:United Kingdom military concepts