Dutch Navy Frigate HNLMS Evertsen Conducts Live Fire Air Defense Drill Against Drone Swarm Threats.

The Royal Netherlands Navy has completed a three-day live-fire air and surface defense exercise with HNLMS Evertsen off the Welsh coast, becoming the first NATO ally to participate in Exercise Sharpshooter. The milestone highlights growing allied integration as navies adapt to the rising threat from unmanned systems and complex, multi-directional attacks.

According to information released by QinetiQ and the Royal Netherlands Navy on December 19, 2025, the Dutch air defense frigate HNLMS Evertsen successfully concluded an advanced live-fire exercise at the UK Ministry of Defence test range in Aberporth. Conducted over three days, the event placed the frigate and its crew into a highly realistic operational scenario designed to replicate modern air and surface threats, including unmanned aerial systems and coordinated attack profiles increasingly seen in contemporary conflicts.
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HNLMS Evertsen is a De Zeven Provinciën-class air defense frigate, displacing approximately 6,000 tons and specifically designed to protect high-value naval assets against saturation attacks (Picture source: QinetiQ)

Operating around 20 miles off the coast of Wales, HNLMS Evertsen faced coordinated simulated swarm attacks involving both aerial and surface threats. QinetiQ deployed its Banshee Whirlwind aerial drone targets, capable of replicating high-speed, low-signature unmanned aerial systems, alongside the Hammerhead uncrewed surface vehicle designed to simulate fast and aggressive surface attackers. These live threats were integrated with synthetic injects representing cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and hostile aircraft, creating a congested battlespace intended to stress the ship’s combat system from early detection through final engagement.

HNLMS Evertsen is a De Zeven Provinciën-class air defense frigate displacing approximately 6,000 tons and specifically designed to protect high-value naval assets against saturation attacks. Central to its performance during Sharpshooter was its advanced sensor and combat management architecture, built around the SMART-L long-range air surveillance radar and the APAR active phased-array radar. This sensor combination allows the ship to detect, track, and classify multiple airborne threats simultaneously, including small drones and high-altitude ballistic targets, providing the situational awareness required in complex swarm scenarios.

During the exercise, Evertsen successfully tracked and neutralized five aerial targets and engaged two Hammerhead unmanned surface vehicles, both of which were hit and sunk. Dutch Navy officials confirmed that the engagements tested the full layered defense concept of the ship, combining radar cueing, command-and-control decision-making, and coordinated weapons employment. The frigate’s armament, which includes the Mk 41 vertical launch system capable of firing SM-2 and ESSM missiles, a 127 mm main gun, and close-in weapon systems, was exercised within realistic rules of engagement designed to mirror combat conditions in contested waters.

The threat scenario was developed by Inzpire, a QinetiQ-owned tactical training specialist, with a focus on defending critical maritime infrastructure and allied task groups. Live and synthetic threats were deliberately blended to overwhelm sensor operators and command teams, forcing rapid prioritization and engagement decisions. Sources familiar with the exercise noted that the sustained tempo over multiple days was a key training objective, reflecting the endurance demands expected during prolonged naval operations where unmanned threats may be launched repeatedly at low cost by adversaries.

Commander Marcel Keveling of the Royal Netherlands Navy emphasized that the immersive nature of the exercise delivered tangible operational value. He stated that firing live weapons against realistic targets while maintaining a heightened state of readiness over several days provided lessons that will directly influence future deployments. He also highlighted that such training is essential as modern naval warfare increasingly involves asymmetric threats where drones and unmanned surface vessels can challenge even highly capable air defense ships.

From the UK side, QinetiQ underlined the strategic importance of Sharpshooter as a multinational training platform. Will Blamey, Chief Executive of UK Defence at QinetiQ, noted that interoperability between allied navies is becoming critical as threat systems evolve faster and become more networked. He stressed that blending live and synthetic environments enables crews to train decision-making under pressure while sharing tactics and operational insights across national boundaries.

QinetiQ’s role as a cornerstone of UK military test and evaluation was central to the exercise. Under the Long-Term Partnering Agreement with the UK Ministry of Defence, the company operates 16 sites nationwide, supporting complex training across land, sea, and air domains. Exercise Sharpshooter forms part of a broader effort to validate NATO air and missile defense concepts against emerging threats observed in recent conflicts, particularly the widespread use of drone swarms to probe and saturate defensive systems.

The Dutch Navy’s participation follows a series of recent Sharpshooter and related exercises involving the Royal Navy and allied forces. Earlier in 2025, HMS Dauntless countered drone swarms ahead of its deployment with the UK Carrier Strike Group. QinetiQ also supported Exercise Med Strike in the Mediterranean and the large-scale Formidable Shield exercise off Scotland, where 11 allied nations collectively responded to threats ranging from unmanned systems to ballistic and supersonic missiles.

For the Royal Netherlands Navy, the successful performance of HNLMS Evertsen during Exercise Sharpshooter reinforces the operational relevance of the De Zeven Provinciën-class design in today’s threat environment. As unmanned systems proliferate and adversaries increasingly rely on saturation tactics, the ability of advanced air defense frigates to integrate sensors, weapons, and allied networks will remain a cornerstone of NATO maritime security.