Operation Atlantic City Sends Marines on Historic Mission to Remote Arctic Island

U.S. Marines joined Norwegian and British troops in a “first-of-its-kind mission” in the remote Arctic this summer, testing whether the forces could operate together under punishing conditions. Operation Atlantic City ran from Aug. 26 to Sept. 4 on Norway’s island of Jan Mayen.

The Norwegian led exercise reflected NATO’s increasing attention to the Arctic, where the alliance is concerned about Russia’s ability to project power and disrupt critical infrastructure. Marines also practiced defending key maritime terrain with tactics refined during exercises in the Pacific.

Operation Atlantic City was named after a U.S. base located on Jan Mayen during World War II. The Marine Corps said the exercise marked the first “rapid insertion of military assets to remote and austere locations.”

According to a Marine Corps news release, the forces developed expeditionary advanced basing capabilities and tested combined fires missions. Participants also worked on maritime domain awareness and denying adversaries access to nearby sea lanes.

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The exercise integrated multinational sensors, precision fires, and command and control nodes into a unified joint kill web. Training with weapons capable of challenging enemy aircraft and naval movements appeared to be a major part of the operation.

At the exercise’s outset, a U.S. Air Force C-17 transported a U.S. Navy Containerized Launching System to Trondheim in central Norway. The 40 foot container carried four launch cells for anti air and anti ship missiles.

That strategic airlift mission demonstrated rapid movement of joint logistics and interoperable communications assets. U.S. and British cargo aircraft then transported vehicles and other equipment to Jan Mayen for the rapid insertion training.

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The equipment included U.S. Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, a Norwegian National Maneuver Air Defense System, and an Australian Strikemaster anti ship missile system operated by Marines. Troops moved the vehicles around the island to test their ability to position and protect assets across rough and contested terrain.

Those platforms relayed targeting information and communications through what the Marine Corps calls “a resilient kill web” of dispersed weapons and command and control nodes. An aerial drone also delivered medical supplies, adding another expeditionary test to the mission.

Jan Mayen is a mountainous island located 620 miles from mainland Norway. It has an active volcano, is partially covered by glaciers, and is uninhabited except for several dozen Norwegian military personnel and Norwegian Meteorological Institute employees.

A Norwegian official said after Operation Atlantic City 2025 that the surrounding waters are “vital to NATO in terms of securing international sea lines of communication and transatlantic supply routes.” According to Lt. Col. Kurt Stahl, communications director for US Marine Corps Forces Europe, the 2025 exercise marked the first time Marines operated on Jan Mayen.

Stahl said this year’s exercise was “quite significant” because Marines traveled to the island for a second consecutive year. Lt. Col. David Palacio, fires officer for Marine Corps Forces Europe, called Jan Mayen a “true austere island location” where Marines can train on strategically important but inhospitable terrain.

Palacio said this year featured greater integration across targeting, intelligence, communications, and medical capabilities. Those functions, he said, would be concerns in any austere and isolated environment.

Image Credit: DoW

Atlantic City 2026 resembled Marine Corps exercises conducted with allies in the Western Pacific. In recent years, Marines have deployed sensors and weapons, including the NMESIS anti ship missile, to Philippine and Japanese islands to monitor and control surrounding sea lanes and airspace.

Palacio said the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle delivered aboard a British cargo plane “was really being used as a surrogate for” NMESIS. The exercise validated that the vehicle could fit aboard the aircraft and be rapidly delivered to Jan Mayen, a task Palacio said was completed “flawlessly.”

The operation ran alongside Northern Viking, a NATO exercise focused on defending Iceland and sea lanes between Greenland, Iceland, and the United Kingdom. That strategically important chokepoint is known as the GIUK Gap.

Both exercises were part of NATO’s new Arctic Sentry initiative, which the alliance described as a response to “Russia’s increasing military activity and China’s growing interest in the Arctic.” Maj. Gen. Øivind Gunnerud, chief of the Royal Norwegian Air Force, said allied activity in the Arctic has more than doubled over the past three to five years.

Gunnerud said Russia remains the leading military factor shaping Norway’s planning in the High North. He cited Russia’s Northern Fleet, long range aviation forces, and advanced air and missile systems located close to Norway.

Norway is also investing further in Jan Mayen, including plans to strengthen its military posture and authority there. A planned undersea cable project is expected to improve the island’s connectivity with mainland Norway.

Klaus Dodds and Caroline Kennedy-Pipe, professors and Arctic security experts, wrote that Norway has “unquestionably escalated” its presence and funding on Jan Mayen. They said the island has changed from a longstanding meteorological outpost into “a crucial site of Norwegian security activity.”

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