Yesterday the Closing Ceremony of RealThaw & HotBlade 2024 (RTHB24) took place. Presiding over the ceremony was the Air Commander, Lieutenant-General António Branco.

During the event that marked the end of the exercises, the National Flags of the participating countries were lowered, while the National Anthem of Portugal was sung, which welcomed HRHB24.

At the ceremony, the Air Commander, Lieutenant-General António Branco and Colonel Inácio, responsible for the Multinational helicopter training center (MHTC), spoke, praising the unique opportunity to test interoperability in different missions, and the positive response that the participants gave at the context of two multinational exercises taking place simultaneously.

Next, the traditional awards ceremony took place, where some soldiers who were committed to the exercise received a certificate of appreciation for the good performance of their duties.

In the coming days, the last departures of RTHB24 participants will take place towards their countries of origin.

Over the last three weeks, techniques, tactics and procedures were put into practice with the aim of improving interoperability between exercise participants and preparing them for different possible scenarios.