Royal Navy test fires NSM and Sea Venom against realistic target for first time
RN Type 23 frigate HMS Portland fires a Naval Strike Missile at the US Navy's decommissioned frigate, USS Klakring, as part of a joint exercise at the MoD Hebrides range on 21 September 2026. (UK MoD/Crown Copyright)
The Type 23 frigate HMS Portland and an embarked Wildcat HMA2 helicopter from 815 Naval Air Squadron fired Naval Strike Missile (NSM) and Sea Venom anti-ship missiles respectively at the former Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Klakring on 21 September during Exercise Atlantic Thunder 2026, the Royal Navy (RN) said in a press release on 29 September.
The US Sixth Fleet-led sinking exercise (SINKEX) concluded in the North Atlantic on 25 September, said the RN. The event included the RN's first firing of an operational NSM and its first live firing of an operational Sea Venom against a representative maritime target.
It was the first time the RN fired an operational NSM, following a test firing in September 2025. Developed by Kongsberg, the NSM sea-skimming, high-subsonic anti-ship and land attack missile has a range of over 300 km. The missile uses autonomous target recognition and passive sensors to try and reduce its signature, according to the company.
The RN specified in its release that the NSM will be “complementary” to its forthcoming ‘Future Cruise/Anti-Ship Weapon', now designated Stratus, which will become the Fleet's premier long-range, heavy duty anti-ship missile, carried by next-generation warships fitted with the Mk41 vertical launch system (including the new Type 26 and 31 frigates). The Stratus missile is expected to come in two variants: low-observable and rapid strike.
The RN also fired a Sea Venom missile from a Wildcat operating from the flight deck of HMS Portland
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