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Members of the 136th Cyber Detachment, 54th Troop Command, New Hampshire Army National Guard, participate in Cyber Yankee, the joint defensive cyber training exercise, May 14, 2025, at the Edward Cross Training Complex, Pembroke, N.H. Blue Team 2 was composed of cyber professionals from the New Hampshire and Vermont National Guards, along with members of the Salvadoran Army, New Hampshire’s partner nation through the State Partnership Program. Together, they worked to counter a simulated cyberattack on critical infrastructure, strengthening regional coordination and international collaboration.
(Photo Credit: Sgt. Kelly Boyer)VIEW ORIGINAL2 / 5Show Caption +Hide Caption –
Members of the 136th Cyber Detachment, 54th Troop Command, New Hampshire Army National Guard, participate in the joint defensive cyber training exercise, Cyber Yankee, May 14, 2025, at the Edward Cross Training Complex, Pembroke, N.H. Blue Team 2 was composed of cyber professionals from the New Hampshire and Vermont National Guards, along with members of the Salvadoran Army, New Hampshire’s partner nation through the State Partnership Program. Together, they worked to counter a simulated cyberattack on critical infrastructure, strengthening regional coordination and international collaboration.
(Photo Credit: Sgt. Kelly Boyer)VIEW ORIGINAL3 / 5Show Caption +Hide Caption –
New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte receives a briefing from National Guard cyber operators during Cyber Yankee 2025, a joint defensive cyber training exercise, May 14, 2025, at the Edward Cross Training Complex, Pembroke, N.H. The event, hosted by the N.H. Army National Guard, brought together more than 330 participants from the military, government, private sector, and allied nations to simulate a large-scale cyberattack on critical infrastructure.
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Senior Airman Wesley Hodgman, cyber systems operations specialist with the 157th Communications Squadron, New Hampshire Air National Guard, performs network and post-enumeration scans to detect malicious activity during Cyber Yankee 2025, a joint defensive cyber training exercise, May 14, 2025, at the Edward Cross Training Complex in Pembroke, N.H. Hodgman was part of a “Blue Team 2” that was tasked with defending critical infrastructure networks against simulated cyberattacks during the exercise.
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Maj. Gen. Teri Williams, special assistant to the director of the Army National Guard for cyber matters, delivers the keynote address to distinguished visitors during Cyber Yankee, May 14, 2025, at the Edward Cross Training Complex in Pembroke, New Hampshire. “This exercise is really about building two critical things: communication and trust,” said Williams. “When the bad day comes, it’s the relationships forged here, across military, civilian, and international partners, that will make us ready and able to respond together.”
(Photo Credit: Sgt. Kelly Boyer)VIEW ORIGINAL
PEMBROKE, N.H. – The New Hampshire National Guard hosted more than 300 participants from the military, government, private industry, and state partnership countries for a two-week cyber defense exercise May 5–16 at the Edward Cross Training Complex in Pembroke.
Now in its 11th year, Cyber Yankee 2025 simulated a large-scale cyberattack on critical infrastructure across New England.
“As global cyber threats continue to escalate, exercises like Cyber Yankee remain essential to U.S. national defense,” said Lt. Col. Dupuis, chief information officer for the New Hampshire Army National Guard and exercise director. “With our expanding scope of threats, growing list of partners, and emphasis on real-world applicability, Cyber Yankee stands as a model for whole-of-government cyber response.”
The scenario, conducted within a Department of Defense standardized training platform, revolved around unattributed cyberattacks on fictional utilities. In the first week, participants received role-specific technical training. In the second week, five joint and multinational blue teams defended simulated infrastructure networks while interacting with role-players acting as corporate CIOs and IT staff.
Red team adversaries provided realistic opposition, while white team observers ensured training remained focused and adaptive.
“This exercise has been a really valuable experience,” said Spc. Jonathan George, a cyber operations specialist with the NHARNG's 136th Cyber Security Detachment, who recently transferred from the infantry. “I’m learning a ton. It’s great to be part of a large-scale event that feels realistic and put my knowledge into practice.”
For the first time, U.S. Space Force participated.
“It’s been very validating to see that our technical capabilities are up to par,” said 1st Lt. Kayla Santos, deputy mission planning cell chief with the 65th Cyberspace Squadron. “This exercise has given us the opportunity to operationalize what we’ve learned.”
“Even more valuable has been learning how to report up, manage information, and communicate effectively across larger, joint teams,” she added. “That’s been huge for a small, newly structured unit like ours.”
Other participants included the U.S. Marines and National Guard cyber units from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Department of Energy, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts also played key roles.
Private sector and National Guard state partners Albania, the Bahamas, El Salvador, Israel, Kenya, Paraguay, and Uruguay enhanced realism and strengthened multinational collaboration, Dupuis said.
“This exercise is really about building two critical things: communication and trust,” said Maj. Gen. Terin Williams, special assistant to the director of the Army National Guard for cyber matters and keynote guest. “When the bad day comes, it’s the relationships forged here, across military, civilian, and international partners, that will make us ready and able to respond together.”
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