On November 25 and 26, 2025, the commanders of the first 5 squads of the front met in Brest as part of the annual seminar organized by the staff of the Atlantic coastal reserve flotilla (FRC ATL).
The FRC ATL commander took this opportunity to provide an overview of the project’s ramp-up process and to outline his directives for the coming months. Valuable information was then exchanged with the staff, either thematically or in response to questions from the squads.
A dynamic demonstration of a man-overboard rescue net was organized in the presence of representatives from CEPN and ALFAN/Brest.
The Maritime Prefect of the Atlantic region spoke at the close of the seminar to address the commanders directly, outlining his assessment of the situation in the theater and his expectations regarding the use of resources deployed by the units.
The two days spent together facilitated the flow of information, where the more senior squad commanders were able to share their experience from over a year of activities with the younger ones.
Next year, the commander community will expand with the creation of 3 new squads.
Regarding coastal reserve fleets
The coastal reserve flotillas are managed by headquarters that oversee the operational structure of basic units of French Navy reservists called squads. They are attached to each of the three metropolitan maritime districts: Mediterranean, Atlantic, and English Channel and North Sea. Each flotilla comprises approximately 10 squads, based in ports along the coastline, outside of existing naval bases.
It is in this context that the Atlantic coastal reserve flotilla is deployed from its headquarters and through coastal squadrons geographically distributed along the coastline between Mont St Michel and the Spanish border.
To date, nearly 80 reserve sailors have already been recruited or are in the process of being recruited, 60% of whom come directly from civil society residing in the immediate vicinity of the sites.