Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic

Allied Command Atlantic
ACLANT Emblem.
Active	30 January 1952 - 19 June 2003
Allegiance	NATO
Size	Command
Headquarters	Norfolk, Virginia,
Nickname(s)	SACLANT
Engagements	Cold War

The Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT) was one of two supreme commanders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the other being the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR). The SACLANT led Allied Command Atlantic, based at Norfolk, Virginia. The entire command was routinely referred to as 'SACLANT'.

In 1981 SACLANT's wartime task was listed as being to provide for the security of the area by guarding sea lanes to deny their use to an enemy and to safeguard them for the reinforcement and resupply of NATO Europe with personnel and materiel.

The command's area of responsibility extended from the North Pole to the Tropic of Cancer as well as extending from the east coast of the North America to the west coast of Africa and Europe, including Portugal but not the English Channel, the British Isles, the lower North Sea and the Canary Islands.

Soon after its formation, ACLANT together with Allied Command Europe carried out the large exercise Exercise Mainbrace. Throughout the Cold War years, SACLANT carried out many other exercises, such as Operation Mariner in 1953 and Operation Strikeback in 1957, as well as the Northern Wedding and Ocean Safari series of naval exercises during the 1970s and 1980s. The command also played a critical role in the annual Exercise REFORGER from the 1970s onwards. Following the end of the Cold War, the Command was reduced in status and size, with many of its subordinate headquarters spread across the Atlantic area losing their NATO status and funding. However, the basic structure remained in place until the Prague Summit in the Czech Republic in 2002.

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