The event was attended by the Minister of National Defence, Juozas Olekas, the Chief of Defence of Lithuania, Major General Jonas Vytautas Žukas, the Commander of the Lithuanian Land Force, Major General Almantas Leika, and leadership of other units of the Lithuanian Armed Forces.
The exercise has now moved from the coastal area to Pabradė, and is now training Lithuanian, U.S., Portuguese and Polish mortar platoons indirect fire support. The firing exercise was attended military personnel of the General Romualdas Giedraitis Artillery Battalion, the Grand Duchess Birutė Uhlan Battalion, the Lithuanian Grand Duke Butigeidis Dragoon Battalion, Algirdas and Kęstutis Mechanised Infantry Battalions, and territorial units of the National Defence Volunteer Force. The training audience from NATO allies are: the M109A6 Paladin Howitzer Platoon of the 1-41 Field Artillery Battalion, the United States Army in Europe, a 120mm mortar platoon from the 15th Mechanised Brigade of Poland, a 120mm mortar platoon from the 2-7 Infantry Battalion of the United States, and a 81mm mortar platoon from a reconnaissance company of Portugal.
Flaming Thunder in an annual international exercise organised by the Lithuanian Land Force, Lithuanian Armed Forces, in Lithuania for the third time in a row. The number of participating NATO allies increases each the year just like the intensity of the exercise.
