NATO's Ramstein Flag 26 exercise, held June 8-12, involved up to 150 aircraft from 18 nations operating from 20 locations across Europe. British F-35B Lightning jets from HMS Prince of Wales flew sorties over Finland for the first time, while US Marine Corps F-35Bs conducted highway landing, refueling, and takeoff operations in Tervo, Finland. The exercise tested NATO's ability to respond to an attack on a member state under Article 5, with Finland's participation underscoring its long border with Russia. The UK Carrier Strike Group operated in the North Sea, and air command and control was coordinated from NATO's Combined Air Operations Center in Bodo, Norway.

Explorer Josh Gates and the Hellships Memorial Foundation have located the wreck of the Japanese 'hell ship' Hōfuku Maru, sunk by American aircraft on September 21, 1944, while transporting over 1,000 Allied Dutch and British POWs. The discovery was made using Japanese archival records and an aerial photograph, and confirmed by the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands. The site, considered a war grave, was found after decades of searching due to incorrect U.S. records. The sinking was one of the largest single-day losses of Allied POWs in the Pacific theater.