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36-672: The unit consists of coastal rangers and vessel operators. Home base is at Trondenes in Harstad Municipality in North Norway . Beyond the 1990s and up to the turn of the millennium, there was a widespread perception that the Coast Artillery's coastal forts had played their role, as the experiences from the Gulf War in 1990–1991 showed that stationary installations were very vulnerable to precision-guided weapons . The dissolution of

72-593: A C-130 Hercules . Sweden and Norway use the Hellfire for coastal defense and have conducted tests with Hellfire launchers mounted on the Combat Boat 90 coastal assault boat. The US Navy evaluated the missile for use on the Freedom -class littoral combat ship and Independence -class littoral combat ship from 2014. The missile was successfully fired from a LCS in early 2017. This system is set to deploy by late 2019. In 2016

108-1007: A further 20 in 2009. In the British Parliament , Liberal Democrat politician Nick Harvey argued that the "Parliament must be reassured these are a weapon of last resort." AGM-114 Hellfire missiles were used to kill Hamas leader Ahmed Yassin by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) in 2004, and by the US military to kill American-born Islamic cleric Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen in 2011, Al-Qaeda operative Abu Yahya al-Libi in Pakistan in 2012, al-Shabaab militant Mukhtar Abu Zubair in Somalia in 2014, and British ISIL executioner Mohammed Emwazi (also known as "Jihadi John") in Syria in 2015. They were also used in

144-436: A maritime part, with basic training in the use of RHIBs, deployment with combat boat 90, surface swimming and survival in a coastal environment. A maritime patrol course is then carried out with field disciplines, combat techniques, marksmanship training, combat casualty care , signals and a number of field exercises in a coastal environment to ensure the quality of the education level on an ongoing basis. The last part of

180-536: A nearby mountain. The last element is nes which means " headland ". The shape of the headland has been compared with that of the snout of a hog. This article about a location in Troms is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . AGM-114 Hellfire The AGM-114 Hellfire is an American missile developed for anti-armor use, later developed for precision drone strikes against other target types, especially high-value targets . It

216-590: A professional department, gaining a high reputation among allied departments and the Norwegian command in Mazar-e Sharif . From December 2013 to July 2014, KJK participated with a significant contribution to the operation to remove chemical weapons from Syria ( RECSYR ). In the autumn of 2014, then Chief of Defense Haakon Bruun-Hanssen presented his professional military advice to the Norwegian government where it

252-467: A semi-active laser homing guidance system and a K-charge multipurpose warhead to engage targets that formerly needed multiple Hellfire variants. It will replace AGM-114K, M, N, and P variants in U.S. service. In October 2012, the U.S. ordered 24,000 Hellfire II missiles, for both the U.S. armed forces and foreign customers. A possible new JCM successor called the Joint Air to Ground Missile (JAGM)

288-667: Is located on the northern end of the town, on a peninsula in the Vågsfjorden . The village is notable for the Trondenes Fort at the northern tip of the peninsula as well as the medieval Trondenes Church . The medieval Trondenes Church was historically the centre of the large Trondenes prosti , a deanery in the Diocese of Hålogaland . According to tradition, the first Christians in Northern Norway were baptised , perhaps as early as

324-845: Is reflected i.a. through the unit's contribution in Afghanistan. KJK train regularly with allied partners like USMC , Royal Marines and Netherlands Marine Corps . In November 2007, a KJK unit assisted a force of Afghan soldiers and their 14 American mentors as they came under a Taliban ambush in Badghis province in Afghanistan . When the Afghan soldiers and their American mentors were headed into an area to apprehend Taliban soldiers and leaders, they were unaware that they were headed into an ambush. The Norwegian soldiers observed this and were able to get through to their American allies on radio and warn them about

360-399: Is tested. The five weeks ensure that the aspirants have the personal qualities that the education requires. The period is characterized by high activity and demanding military training in a coastal environment. The selection is mainly carried out under field conditions, in the coastal zone and at sea, and ends with a milestone exercise. Professional training as a coastal ranger starts with

396-487: Is thus to carry out intelligence gathering in various contexts and situations. KJK's operational portfolio is largely similar to the Norwegian Army 's Intelligence Battalion and artillery rangers, and after long experience from Afghanistan , they have valuable weight in other spectrums of the warfare domain other than the coastal zone. The units must be able to document and analyze the information obtained. Furthermore,

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432-626: Is under consideration. Due to budget reductions, JAGM development was separated into increments, with increment 1 focusing on adding a millimeter-wave radar to the Hellfire-R to give it a dual-mode seeker, enabling it to track moving targets in bad weather. In 2009, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) acknowledged that Army Air Corps (AAC) AgustaWestland Apaches had used AGM-114N Hellfire missiles against Taliban forces in Afghanistan . The MoD stated that 20 missiles were used in 2008 and

468-455: The Almar District , Afghanistan. KJK has an annual selection, and anyone who meets the requirements can apply for admission. The basic education is based on volunteering and extends over one year. The education consists of an initial selection, a selection period over five weeks and a ten-month specialist training. Prior to the coastal ranger training, an initial selection is carried out by

504-594: The Soviet Union also reduced the threat of a naval invasion against large parts of the coast, thereby reducing the utility of large stationary coastal forts. At this time, the Norwegian Armed Forces moved away from territorial defense to more focus on international missions, and it was considered to create a marine infantry unit modeled after the Netherlands Marine Corps and Royal Marines . But it

540-479: The assassination of Qasem Soleimani as well as the killing of Ayman al-Zawahiri . The AGM-114 has occasionally been used as an air-to-air missile . The first operational air-to-air kill with a Hellfire took place on 24 May 2001, after a civilian Cessna 152 aircraft entered Israeli airspace from Lebanon, with unknown intentions and refusing to answer or comply with ATC repeated warnings to turn back. An Israeli Air Force AH-64A Apache helicopter fired on

576-496: The Cessna, resulting in its complete disintegration. The second operational air-to-air kill with a Hellfire occurred on 10 February 2018, after an Iranian UAV entered Israeli airspace from Syria. An Israeli Air Force AH-64 launched a Hellfire missile at the UAV, successfully destroying it. In January 2016 The Wall Street Journal reported that one training missile without a warhead

612-552: The Hellfire ;II, but the most common platform is the AH-1Z Viper helicopter gunship, which can carry up to 16 of them. The AGM-114L, or Longbow Hellfire, is a fire-and-forget weapon: equipped with millimeter-wave (MMW) active radar homing , it requires no further guidance after launch—even being able to lock on to its target after launch —and can hit its target without the launcher or other friendly unit being in line of sight of

648-684: The Longbow Hellfire was tested by the US Army using a 15-tube Multi-Mission Launcher mounted on a Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) truck. The MML is an Army-developed weapon system capable of deploying both surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles . The Longbow Hellfire initially equipped the Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) version of the Stryker to serve as a surface-to-air counter-drone missile, but in 2024

684-520: The Norwegian Armed Forces' common recruitment and selection (Forsvarets opptak og seleksjon). Applicants who satisfy the criteria are invited to an initial selection at Trondenes Fort in Harstad. During the initial selection, tests are carried out and the applicant's medical and physical fitness is assessed. In addition, there is a field period where the applicant's physical and mental performance

720-425: The U.S. Army in 1996. Hellfire II's semi-active laser variants—AGM-114K high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT), AGM-114KII with external blast fragmentation sleeve, AGM-114M (blast fragmentation), and AGM-114N metal augmented charge (MAC)—achieve pinpoint accuracy by homing in on a reflected laser beam aimed at the target. The General Atomics MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) carry

756-638: The armed forces of the United States and many other countries. It has also been fielded on surface platforms in the surface-to-surface and surface-to-air roles. Most variants are laser-guided , with one variant, the AGM-114L "Longbow Hellfire", being radar-guided. Laser guidance can be provided either from the launcher, such as the nose-mounted opto-electronics of the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, other airborne target designators or from ground-based observers,

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792-585: The danger ahead, guiding them so they could fight themselves out of the situation. The Norwegian soldiers involved received the Army Commendation Medal for their efforts. In November 2007, KJK took part in Operation Front Straightening to push Taliban out of the Faryab province. The unit lost 3 men 27 June 2010 when a roadside bomb ( IED ) exploded under their vehicle on a mission in

828-531: The departments merged in an attempt to keep KJK's capacities in Northern Norway. The opposition in the Norwegian parliament disagreed with the closure, which led to a defense settlement in November 2016 where it was decided that the unit would continue in its current form. In 2018, the government considered a proposal to incorporate KJK into the Norwegian Special Operations Command, but this

864-530: The goal in 2022 of becoming a leader in maritime drone operations. In September 2023, it became known that the unit has trained Ukrainian marines to be able to operate covertly in coastal areas, including tactical movement and infiltration, covert surveillance, reconnaissance and offensive operations. This is part of a coordinated project with the British Royal Marines and the Netherlands Marine Corps . KJK operatives are trained to be highly mobile in

900-401: The large Trondenes Municipality which existed from 1838 until 1964, when it became part of Harstad Municipality . The municipality (originally the parish ) is named after the old Trondenes farm ( Old Norse : Þróndarnes ) since the historic Trondenes Church was built there. The first element is the genitive case of the word þróndr which means " hog ", referring to the shape of

936-547: The latter two options allowing the launcher to break line of sight with the target and seek cover. The development of the Hellfire Missile System began in 1974 with the United States Army requirement for a " tank-buster ", launched from helicopters to defeat armored fighting vehicles . The Hellfire II, developed in the early 1990s is a modular missile system with several variants, and entered service with

972-511: The littoral environment, using the Combat Boat 90 , RHIBs and occasionally helicopters. The CB90 is capable of landing troops directly on the shore. Their main weapon against enemy vessels is the AGM-114 Hellfire missile, using a blast-fragmentation warhead. This will be carried in the CB90, and launched from ashore, taking advantage of Norway's numerous islands and rugged coast. KJK's main task

1008-474: The professional training is a course in maritime ranger operations which ends with an exercise that checks that the level of education is satisfactory. The coastal ranger aspirants are then transferred to an operational squad in the Coastal Ranger Command. Trondenes Trondenes is a neighborhood and parish in the town of Harstad in Harstad Municipality in Troms county, Norway . The area

1044-530: The target. It also works in adverse weather and battlefield obscurants, such as smoke and fog, which can mask the position of a target or prevent a designating laser from forming a detectable reflection. Each Hellfire weighs 104 pounds (47 kg), including the 20-pound (9 kg) warhead, and has a range of 4.4–6.8 miles (7.1–11 km) depending on trajectory. The Hellfire has a Circular Error Probable (CEP) of less than 3 feet (0.91 m). The AGM-114R "Romeo" Hellfire II entered service in late 2012. It uses

1080-421: The units must be able to direct fire from various platforms ( JTAC ), i.e. contribute to combating high-value targets. Coastal rangers operates in small groups and is equipped and trained to operate alone over time in areas controlled by an enemy. The soldiers are professionals and, based on their competence, they can be used for other tasks that are not necessarily covered within the maritime ISTAR concept. This

1116-480: The year 999, in the small pond, Laugen, just west of Trondenes Church . Many discoveries have been made around Trondenes from the Neolithic period and more recent eras. There are burial mounds from around 1020 located at Altevågen, a short distance north of the church. Prior to the area becoming a part of the urban town of Harstad, the area near the church was a separate village which was the administrative centre of

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1152-626: Was accidentally shipped to Cuba in 2014 after a training mission in Europe; it was later returned. A US official said that this was an inert "dummy" version of the Lockheed system stripped of its warhead, fuse, guidance equipment and motor, known as a "Captive Air Training Missile". The system has been tested for use on the Humvee and the Improved TOW Vehicle (ITV) . Test shots have also been fired from

1188-470: Was not taken forward as the Norwegian navy's boarding capacity would disappear. However, cooperation between the units, and KJK's support for the special forces, was to continue as before. In the context of the fact that Naval Strike Missile had been developed to gain land targeting capacity, it was decided that KJK should gain the capacity to acquire target data outside the frigates' and corvettes' own sensor range using drones (UAV) . The unit set itself

1224-511: Was originally developed under the name " Heliborne laser, fire-and-forget missile", which led to the colloquial name "Hellfire" ultimately becoming the missile's formal name. It has a multi-mission, multi-target precision-strike ability and can be launched from multiple air, sea, and ground platforms, including the MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper . The Hellfire missile is the primary 100-pound (45 kg) class air-to-ground precision weapon for

1260-564: Was recommended that the unit be moved to Haakonsvern Naval Base in Bergen . There, the unit would continue in a boarding and force protection capacity in support of surface vessels, unless the Norwegian Armed Forces were awarded an increased financial framework. In the government's subsequent proposal for a long-term plan, it was stated that they would proceed with this recommendation. Several interest organisations, together with union representatives from KJK and MJK, then started lobbying to try to get

1296-620: Was seen as more relevant for Norwegian conditions to look at the Swedish coastal ranger companies. In 2005, KJK sent its first independent contributions to ISAF as the Military Observer Team (MOT) to the Provincial Reconstruction Team Meymaneh . They also carried out several operations together with Marinejegerkommandoen (MJK) (Norwegian special operations unit). During this time, KJK established its position as

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