The Royal Netherlands Navy has successfully downed waves of airborne and surface drones during a major live-fire trial off the Welsh coast, marking the first time a NATO ally has taken part in

QinetiQ’s Exercise Sharpshooter.

The three-day event, held at the Ministry of Defence range at Aberporth—around 20 miles off the Welsh shoreline—placed the Dutch frigate HNLMS Evertsen under intense, simulated swarm attacks. The drills blended real and computer-generated threats to test the ship’s ability to detect, track and destroy multiple hostile targets at once, reflecting the increasingly complex modern maritime battlefield.

During the exercise, Evertsen went head-to-head with QinetiQ’s Banshee Whirlwind aerial drones and Hammerhead uncrewed surface vessels. The frigate succeeded in shooting down five aerial targets and sinking two unmanned boats.

The scenario, developed by QinetiQ-owned Inzpire, was centred on defending key maritime assets in contested waters. Crews faced a mix of live and synthetic threats, including simulations of cruise and ballistic missiles as well as hostile aircraft—enabling participants to practise the full operational chain from initial detection to weapons engagement.

Commander Marcel Keveling, of the Royal Netherlands Navy, said the training pushed the crew to new levels of readiness.

“Being able to fire at live targets for several days has taught us many lessons we will carry into operational deployments,” he said. He added that the realism built into Exercise Sharpshooter was vital given the current global security landscape, calling it “a prime example” of the training modern navies require.

QinetiQ says the drills underline the growing need for multinational cooperation as drone and missile threats continue to proliferate. Will Blamey, QinetiQ’s Chief Executive for UK Defence, said joint exercises help nations exchange tactics and sharpen decision-making.

“With interoperability more important than ever, these exercises let the UK and its allies train side by side, improving collective readiness,” he said. Blamey added that blending real targets with simulated scenarios ensures forces remain “battle-ready in a fast-changing threat environment.”

Exercise Sharpshooter forms part of QinetiQ’s long-term testing and evaluation programme for the UK military. Under its partnership agreement with the Ministry of Defence, the company operates 16 sites nationwide, delivering training across all branches of the armed forces.

Dutch participation follows earlier Sharpshooter activity involving the Royal Navy. Earlier this year, HMS Dauntless took part in similar swarm-defence drills ahead of its deployment with the UK Carrier Strike Group. QinetiQ has also supported recent multinational air and missile defence exercises, including Med Strike in the Mediterranean and Formidable Shield off Scotland, which saw 11 allied nations practise responses to threats ranging from drone swarms to ballistic and supersonic missiles. Photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Apprentice Shonna Cunningham, Wikimedia commons.