During the period from August 24 to September 10, 2026, the 2026 edition of the multinational Bold Quest exercise was held at the National All Domain Warfighting Center (NADWC) - Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center (CRTC) & Camp Grayling Michigan (MI) - USA, an annual activity led by the U.S. Joint Staff J6 that saw the joint participation of U.S. armed forces together with the deployment representing 22 allied NATO countries, 15 countries belonging to the international coalition, along with important industrial partners present in the field.

Bold Quest is configured as an "operational demonstration and assessment exercise" aimed at improving tactical, technical and procedural interoperability between all the armed forces involved and designed to test the interoperability of command and control systems in a multinational and multi-domain inter-service operational environment.

The primary objective of this edition was the experimentation and development of the Coalition Joint All Domain C2 (CJADC2), a model aimed at integrating command and control across different domains - land, air, sea, space and cyber - through training scenarios that are as realistic as possible using Live, Virtual & Constructive (LVC) approaches.

Multinational interoperability and multi-domain scenarios

In the field, at different sites, over 1,000 military personnel and civilians from the defense industry were deployed with the purpose of testing and evaluating advanced C2 (Command and Control) technological solutions, verifying their effectiveness in a multinational context characterized by multi-domain challenges.

Bold Quest represents a unique platform for testing in realistic conditions the ability to share critical information, synchronize maneuvers and integrate weapon systems and sensors belonging to different nations. In this way, the resilience of coalitions is strengthened and response times to continuously evolving threats in the field are shortened. Compared to previous editions, Bold Quest 26 saw the actual deployment of assets in the field, within the training area, employing U.S. vehicles equipped with command and control systems connected via radio devices to the Command Post and equipped with vehicular C2 systems (C2DN Evo and TALON) and dismounted SIRIO.

Bold Quest 2026 Italy protagonist in the multinational exercise in Michigan

The national system and joint participation at the national level: Army, Navy, Air Force in the field together with the Italian defense industry sector

For the Navy, operators and specialists of the San Marco Marine Brigade (BMSM) were present, while for the Italian Army, units of the Army Evaluation and Integration Command (COMVIE) participated with their own ITB (Integration Test Bed) team and support elements for the Folgore parachute brigade. Completing the inter-service contingent deployed in the field, operators of the 17th Incursors Wing of the Air Force.

On the industrial front, the national component was represented by two leading players: ASTIM srl, a Ravenna-based company that deployed the TALON TMS MK4 C2 system (Target Acquisition Land Observation and Navigation Tactical Mission System) in support of the San Marco Brigade and Leonardo Company, which contributed with the Multi Data Link Processor (MDLP), a key element for managing and integrating data flows, and C2 systems (C2DNEvo and SIRIO) in support of the Italian Army.

Towards an integrated digital coalition

Bold Quest 2026 proved to be not only a technological testing ground, but also a true Test Bed that made it possible to consolidate trust between allies, strengthen cooperation, and validate innovative operational concepts.

For Italy, the joint participation of the Armed Forces and industry represented a valuable opportunity to test national solutions in the field, comparing them with those of allies and actively contributing to the path that will lead towards an integrated and digital coalition.

“Participation in Bold Quest 2026 represents, for Defense and especially for COMVIE, an extraordinary opportunity to confirm Italian excellence in the field of Command and Control systems”, declared General Francesco Olla, Commander of COMVIE, present at the final phase of the exercise as a representative of the Army, adding that “in a constantly evolving geopolitical landscape, the ability to make different technological systems interoperable dynamically constitutes the true force multiplier, especially in large-scale warfighting scenarios”.

With CJADC2, the future of command and control appears increasingly interconnected, resilient, and multi-domain: a horizon that Bold Quest 2026 also contributed this year to making operational and real.