A soldier hits the deck,
ready for anything, as Thai and American naval forces blast it out near
Sattahip in the annual CARAT joint military exercise, which ran from
June 3-12.
Commander Task Force 73 Public Affairs
Sattahip - The 19th annual Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training
(CARAT) exercise between the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, Royal Thai
Navy and Royal Thai Marine Corps began June 3 with opening ceremonies in
Sattahip.
CARAT Thailand 2013 brings together U.S.-Thai naval forces to conduct a
series of shore-based and at sea training events designed to refine
longstanding relationships, enhance interoperability and address mutual
interests.
Man down! Thai Marines
practice emergency battlefield evacuation during the 2013 CARAT
exercises in Sattahip. (Photo by Pattaya Mail’s Patcharapol Panrak)
The Royal Thai Navy and Royal Thai Marine Corps have
participated in CARAT since the exercise began in 1995. CARAT is a
series of bilateral military exercises between the U.S. Navy and the
armed forces of Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Timor-Leste.
Training in each CARAT phase is tailored to meet shared priorities
across a broad range of naval capabilities. CARAT Thailand 2013 will
focus on combined operations at sea, amphibious landing events and
highly realistic humanitarian assistance, disaster response scenarios.
For the first time this year, U.S. Navy and RTN ships will transfer fuel
during an underway replenishment at sea. The HADR scenario will feature
a combined response to a simulated earthquake and tsunami involving
engineers, salvage experts and civilian first responders.
“It is a pleasure to work side-by-side with our long-standing friends in
the Royal Thai Navy and Royal Thai Marine Corps,” said Rear Adm. William
McQuilkin, Commander, Naval Forces Korea and executive agent for CARAT
Thailand 2013. “This year’s schedule reflects the evolving complexity of
the past 19 years that our forces have participated in CARAT Thailand,
and I expect our Sailors and Marines to benefit greatly from the
upcoming training events.”
Additional skill areas exercised during CARAT
Thailand include maritime interdiction operations, air defense, undersea
warfare, naval gunnery, riverine, search and rescue, diving and salvage,
and medical training. Multiple opportunities to build personal and
professional relationships between forces will also occur during
military operations symposia, receptions, band concerts and sports
events.
More than 1,200 U.S. Sailors, Marines and civilian mariners are
participating in CARAT Thailand 2013. U.S. Navy ships include the dock
landing ship USS Tortuga (LSD 46), guided missile destroyer USS Curtis
Wilbur (DDG 54), dry cargo ship USNS Washington Chambers (T-AKE 11) and
the diving and salvage ship USNS Safeguard (T-ARS 50). A USMC Landing
Force Company is comprised of Marines with India Company, 3rd Battalion,
3rd Marine Regiment with an attachment from 2nd Amphibian Assault
Battalion, 2nd Marine Division from Combat Assault Battalion, 3rd Marine
Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force.
Also participating in CARAT Thailand are a riverine
squadron and medical professionals assigned to Maritime Civil Affairs
and Security Training Command (MCAST), Seabees from Naval Mobile
Construction Battalion Five (NMCB5), divers from Mobile Diving and
Salvage Unit 1 (MUDSU), trainers from Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile
Unit 5 (EODMU5), P-3C Orion and MH-60 aircraft, and the U.S. Seventh
Fleet Band, Orient Express.
