Exercise Shield 22

(From left to right) Army Staff Sgt. Surya Laller, assigned to the 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Army Capt. Mitchel Hess assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade and Croatian Army 2nd Lt. Jure Brkic, Croatian Air Defense Regiment, fire an FIM-92 Stinger as part of Exercise Shield 22 in Pula, Croatia, April 8, 2022. Exercise Shield is an annual Croatian air defense exercise that aims at strengthening the execution of the Air Defense tasks against low and medium altitude moving targets. During the exercise, the 173rd Airborne Brigade and Croatian Air Defense Regiment jointly trained on air defense tactics, techniques and procedures to include air-space control, deconfliction and surveillance as well as targeting and live-fire engagement against flying objects on low- and medium-level altitudes. The 173rd Airborne Brigade is the U.S. Army's contingency response force in Europe, providing rapidly deployable forces to the United States European, African, and Central Command areas of responsibility. Forward deployed across Italy and Germany, the brigade routinely trains alongside NATO allies and partners to build partnerships and strengthen the alliance.