16 September 1952
"First of all I just heard the word passed, that we were now crossing the Arctic Circle. So you can see for yourself how far north we are....It is getting quite cold up here....We have been hitting some bad weather....Last nite I could hardly sleep, it was so rough back there."
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| Exercise Mainbrace-Part of Cold War 1947-1953 |
Operational history
Initial planning for Exercise Mainbrace was initiated by
General Dwight D. Eisenhower prior to his resignation as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) to run for the
President of the United States.
[8] The exercise itself was commanded jointly by
SACLANT Admiral Lynde D. McCormick,
USN, and
SACEUR General Matthew B. Ridgeway, U.S. Army, with the immediate theater commander being Admiral Sir
Patrick Brind, RN, who was in
Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces Northern Europe.
[9][10][11][12][13]
Mainbrace was conducted over twelve days between September 14–25, 1952, and involved nine navies:
United States Navy, the British
Royal Navy,
French Navy,
Royal Canadian Navy,
Royal Danish Navy,
Royal Norwegian Navy,
Portuguese Navy,
Royal Netherlands Navy, and
Belgian Naval Force operating in the
Norwegian Sea, the
Barents Sea, the
North Sea near the
Jutland Peninsula, and the
Baltic Sea. Its objective was to convince
Denmark and
Norway that those nations could be defended against attack from the
Soviet Union.
[8] The exercise featured simulated carrier air strikes against "enemy" formation attacking NATO's northern flank near
Bodø, Norway, naval air attacks against aggressors near the
Kiel Canal, anti-submarine and anti-ship operations, and U.S. marines landing in Denmark.
[9][10][11][12][13][14][15]
Force composition
Eighty thousand men, over 200 ships, and 1,000 aircraft participated in the Mainbrace. The
New York Times' military reporter
Hanson W. Baldwin described this NATO naval force as being the "largest and most powerful fleet that has cruised in the North Sea since
World War I."
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| Remarks written in Clark's official report. |
