RAMSTIN AIR BASE, Germany -- Military chaplains from 12 NATO and partner nations across Europe convened at Ramstein for a conference June 10-12, 2025, to wargame how they might operate together in future conflicts.
Although the group, officially known as the NATO Air Force Chaplains Consultative Committee, has met annually since their founding in 1952, the focus of the gathering has shifted over the years from social networking to mission-focused planning.
“We realize we may have to adjust some of our training and tactical ministering,” said USAFE-AFAFRICA Command Chaplain and conference host, Chaplain (Col.) Kleet Barclay. “As we talk about agile combat employment, the possibility of our aircraft landing at a partner nation, Allied nation, something happens… I may not have a United States Air Force chaplain there. Do the Romanians, do the Germans, do the Belgians? Could they step in and provide that immediate care and to what degree?”
Barclay went on to explain that only 26 of the 32 NATO member nations have military chaplaincies, underscoring the need for integration, and that chaplains can be a force multiplier for operations, helping commanders find success on the battlefield by taking care of the warfighter.
“The human weapon system is the most important,” said Barclay. “That’s really what we're looking at. How do we cover down on one another?”
The conference, hosted at the Allied Air Command headquarters, consisted of several briefings, discussions, tabletop exercises, spiritual events at local places of worship, and a base immersion including a flightline tour.
“My biggest takeaway is that we are talking about serious stuff now,” said Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Tore Meberg-Hansen, Chief of Chaplains for the Royal Norwegian Air Force. “It struck a little bit in the stomach, actually.”
“We need to learn from each other. We need to hear experiences,” Meberg-Hansen continued. “Some countries have a lot of experience, have been in a lot of missions, and have experience from war. Others, they are a little bit thinner on it.”
The group also met with their land forces counterparts, the NATO Land Forces Chaplain Consultative Committee, during an offsite to Mainz to further their interoperability.
“It widens the aperture of our knowledge and understanding,” said Air Vice-Marshall Giles Legood, Chaplain-in-Chief of the British Royal Air Force. “The more we can know about how our colleagues and Allies operate, build on personal relationships, the better we can work together when we need to on operations.”
Several participants noted the ongoing war in Ukraine and the lessons to be learned as the nature of war changes.
“We are all preparing for a possible war we hope is never going to happen,” said Dr. Alexandra Dierks, a senior chaplain for the German Army. “There’s a spirit of great seriousness to this whole thing. We are all transitioning from the world we knew – counterinsurgency - to a world we do not know, but we see happening in Ukraine.”
Dierks, also an instructor at the NATO & Partner Chaplain Operations Course, said that NATO chaplains will need to cooperate to meet the challenges they may face in providing faith-based care.
“We are preparing for the possibility of huge numbers of casualties, the possibility of having to look after servicemembers who might not be of our own nation,” Dierks continued. “Multifaith and multinational.”
Barclay stressed the growing role and importance of chaplains in the operational planning process, noting that the role of military chaplains goes beyond leading worship services and providing religious counsel, but also requires them to provide comfort for the wounded, give servicemembers the tools to self-heal, and advise commanders on issues of morale, particularly in deployed and contingency environments.
“It can be easy for [commanders] to push aside the religious support aspect, but when it comes to human factors, they'll also see the importance of that religious and spiritual support,” said Barclay. “We're seeing that across the board with the importance of chaplains in Ukraine. Even Russia is increasing the size of their chaplain corps because they know their people need some type of moral, religious, spiritual support to deal with that trauma of war.”
The conference concluded by electing new leadership for the committee to shepherd the group through this period of heightened readiness.