Defending the High North: Navy EOD, Joint Forces Secure Arctic during AE26
12 March 2026
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – U.S. Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Technicians assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 11 participated in Arctic Edge 2026 (AE26), Feb. 23-March 5.
AE26 is a North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and U.S. Northern Command-led Homeland Defense exercise designed to improve readiness, demonstrate capabilities and enhance Joint and Allied Force interoperability in the Arctic.
“This year, our primary objective was to integrate with other EOD entities in new environments,” said Chief Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician Quinn Gaubatz. "Subject matter expert exchanges help us better our tactics, techniques and procedures through collaboration of our strengths, especially in the challenging conditions that AE26 provided.”
Throughout the exercise, EODMU-11 operated alongside joint EOD forces and other military units on Kodiak Island and at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson (JBER) in Anchorage.
On Kodiak Island, EODMU-11 technicians conducted remote operated vehicle (ROV) operations during a force protection drill, working with 1st EOD Company, 7th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group, Unmanned Undersea Vehicles Squadron 1, Naval Information Warfare Center personnel and U.S. Coast Guard elements assigned to Kodiak Island in assessing, neutralizing and recovering simulated underwater threats.
“Demanding environments such as Kodiak create great opportunities to stress-test our gear,” said Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician 2nd Class Luke Rebeor. “Operating our ROV systems in training alongside joint counterparts helped us accomplish homeland defense objectives together.”
In the drill, ROV operations expanded and supported joint EOD capabilities by providing an essential standoff area in underwater environments during the potentially high-risk reconnaissance and ordnance disposal mission.
At JBER, EODMU-11 conducted joint airfield clearance and unexploded ordnance disposal drills with U.S. Air Force EOD technicians from the 673rd Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron, simulating threats to critical infrastructure in extreme cold weather.
"Operating in the Arctic requires some adaptation,” said Gaubatz. “Standard explosives and techniques work differently in colder climates, so practicing our skills and techniques in Alaska provided an extremely valuable training opportunity.”
Defending the U.S. is inherently linked to the ability of the Joint Force to operate effectively across the entire USNORTHCOM area of responsibility - to include the Arctic. Navy EOD's presence in Alaska during AE26 ensured expeditionary competence in support of Homeland Defense as the strategic importance of the Arctic domain expands.
EODMU-11, a subordinate command of Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group (EODGRU) 1, operates as part of Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC), providing skilled, capable and deployable maritime EOD and Navy Diver forces around the globe to support a range of operations. Units including NECC and EODMU-11 fall under the operational authority of U.S. Naval Forces Northern Command (NAVNORTH).
NAVNORTH is the maritime component of U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM). For exercises like AE26, NAVNORTH provides ready and capable naval forces to execute USNORTHCOM's mission priorities. The employment of naval forces in the Arctic demonstrates the U.S. Navy’s commitment to homeland defense, regional security and seamless integration with joint and Allied forces in a strategically vital region.