A cadet from Britain's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst helps form a security perimeter ahead of a live-fire drill at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on July 9, 2025, during exercise Dynamic Victory. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany — Cadets from Britain’s Royal Military Academy Sandhurst are at the U.S. Army’s expansive training grounds in Bavaria for a pivotal exercise marking the final stage of their commissioning process.
The ongoing exercise, known as Dynamic Victory, unfolds in two phases. The first, held at Grafenwoehr Training Area, focuses on live-fire platoon attacks to prepare the cadets for the challenges ahead.
In next week’s second phase at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels, the cadets will put their skills to the test, going head to head against counterparts from the U.S. Military Academy alongside opposition forces from the 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment.
“They’re seeing allies and partners and realizing they’ve got to work with them, and it’s not going to be just in the U.K. because generally for the U.K., like America, we go abroad to fight wars,” Brigadier Nick Wight-Boycott, the academy’s commander, said Tuesday.
A Royal Military Academy Sandhurst cadet creates a security perimeter before a live-fire drill at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on July 9, 2025, as part of exercise Dynamic Victory. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A cadet from Britain's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst fires at pop-up targets July 9, 2025, at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany as part of exercise Dynamic Victory. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A cadet from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the U.K. guides another cadet in her platoon at Grafenwoehr Training Area on July 9, 2025, during exercise Dynamic Victory. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
For most Sandhurst cadets, the second phase will mark their first time training alongside U.S. forces.
“We hear that the Americans will put up a tough fight, but we’re going to bring it to them as well,” cadet Charlie Foster said Wednesday.
After the exercise, they’ll return to Sandhurst and subsequently earn their commissions during a traditional beret ceremony.
Wight-Boycott said Dynamic Victory is beneficial because of the opportunity for experiencing combat integration.
“The U.S. Army and the U.S. is our most important partner,” he said.
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst cadets line up to clear their rifles after practicing a live-fire platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany on July 9, 2025. The British cadets are at U.S. Army training grounds in Bavaria for exercise Dynamic Victory, the culminating event before their commissioning. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A British cadet from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst takes part in a live-fire drill July 9, 2025, at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany during exercise Dynamic Victory. The cadets will move to the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels next week to integrate with cadets from the U.S. Military Academy for the second phase of the exercise. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
British cadets from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst take part in the first phase of exercise Dynamic Victory at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on July 9, 2025. Next week they will be at another U.S. Army training site in Bavaria, the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
A cadet from Britain's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst fires his weapon during a simulated platoon attack at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany on July 9, 2025. The British cadets are taking part in exercise Dynamic Victory, the culminating event before their commissioning. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
Cadets from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the U.K. discuss infantry tactics at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on July 9, 2025, during exercise Dynamic Victory. The exercise is the culminating event for the cadets before commissioning. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
British soldiers with the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst position themselves to provide suppressive fire during a drill at the U.S. Army's Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on July 9, 2025. The first of exercise Dynamic Victory's two phases is taking place at Grafenwoehr. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)
