No video yet..can't wait to see that action!!
Royal Australian Navy destroyer HMAS
Sydney (DDG-42) successfully fired a Naval Strike Missile and sank former amphibious assault ship USS Tarawa (LHA-1) in the waters off Hawaii during the biennial Rim of the Pacific 2024 exercise.
The Australian Department of Defense described the SINKEX as a “major milestone” for the country’s National Defense Strategy in a news
of the live fire event.
“The National Defence Strategy outlined a strategy of denial as the cornerstone of Defence planning to prevent any potential adversary from succeeding in coercing Australia through force, while supporting regional security and prosperity,” Australian Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said in the release.
The Australian government in April of 2022 picked the NSM to replace the RAN’s Harpoon missile system on its Hobart-class destroyers and Anzac-class frigates, with the Australian government signing a contract for the missile system in January 2023.
“HMAS
Sydney’s firing of Naval Strike Missile during RIMPAC 2024 represents a significant increase in the lethality of our surface fleet, and delivers on our commitment to accelerate the introduction of enhanced lethality strike capabilities,” the head of the RAN, Vice Adm. Mark Hammond, said in the release.
“Naval Strike Missile is a key capability for the lethality enhancement and survivability of our ships and enables our ability to hold an adversary at risk at greater range.”
During a Senate Estimates hearing on June 5, Hammond said the RAN already started outfitting the NSM system on some of its ships and that by the end of the year, the Tomahawk cruise missile will enter service with the RAN, according to the
of the hearing. The Australian government
in August 2023 that it would procure over 200 Tomahawk cruise missiles for the RAN’s three Hobart-class destroyers.
Rescue and salvage ship USNS
Grasp (T-ARS 51) was scheduled to transport the former
Tarawa and the former amphibious transport dock USS
Dubuque (LPD- 8) to the designated target area for the SINKEX, according to a July 2 U.S. Military Sealift Command news
. A Thursday photo from MSC shows
Grasp towing Ex-
Tarawa to the target area.
Meanwhile in Sattahip, Thailand on Thursday, the U.S. Navy, the Royal Thai Navy and the Republic of Singapore Navy kicked off the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Thailand 2024 exercise, according to a Navy
.
“When like-minded navies cooperate and work together multi-laterally, together we have an outsized impact on regional security, stability, and prosperity,” Rear Adm. Joaquin Martinez de Pinillos, the reserve vice commander of U.S. 7th Fleet, said in the release. “This partnership between the U.S., Thai, and Singaporean navies is a model for regional cooperation in a time and place where what happens in the maritime domain has great impact on all nations.”
CARAT is typically a bilateral exercise series that the U.S. Navy conducts with a number of partners in South Asia and South East Asia, though on occasions, trilateral CARATs have happened as additional events. For example, the U.S. performed a trilateral CARAT
with Malaysia and the Philippines and
with Thailand and Singapore.
“The Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10) with an embarked MH-60S Seahawk helicopter will operate at sea with the RTN frigates HTMS Taksin (FFG 422), HTMS Bhumibol Adulyadej (FFG 471), HTMS Chakri Naruebet (FFG 911), and RSN RSS Valiant (91),” reads a news release from Destroyer Squadron 7.
The at-sea phase of the exercise will allow the three navies to operate together as surface action groups and perform anti-submariner warfare drills, according to the news release.
“This exercise continues to demonstrate the depth of U.S.-Thai cooperation, evolving in complexity to enhance our navies’ operational capabilities and tactical readiness in response to emerging challenges,” Capt. Sean Lewis, the commodore of Destroyer Squadron 7, said in the release. “As America’s longstanding treaty ally in Southeast Asia, Thailand exemplifies our enduring commitment to like-minded allies and partners. With Singapore joining this year, CARAT underscores our dedication to fostering a free and open Indo-Pacific, ensuring regional peace, prosperity, and stability.”