India-US naval exercise begins

NEW DELHI:Navies of India and the United States have begun annual war exercises involving anti-submarine warfare surface firings, visit board, search and seizure and submarine operations.

The 14th edition of MALABAR in the Arabian Sea will see frontline units of the U.S. Navy's 7 {+t} {+h} Fleet and Indian Navy's Western Fleet taking part in the 10-day exercise.

The regular India – U.S. interaction over the years has resulted in an increase in the complexity and professional content of the bilateral exercise, Navy spokesman Cdr. P.V.S. Satish said here.

The exercise is primarily aimed at deriving mutual benefit from each others experiences.

The interoperability achieved over the years as a result of such exercises has proved to be operationally beneficial particularly during the ongoing Anti-Piracy Operations in the Gulf of Aden as also during Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations such as the tsunami of 2004, he said .

During MALABAR CY10, the U.S. Navy will be represented by ships from CTF 70 of its 7th Fleet, based at Yokosuka, Japan. The CTF will include the Cruiser USS Shiloh (CG 67), Destroyers USS Chaffee (DDG 90), USS Lassen (DDG 82) and Frigate USS Curts (FFG 38). In addition, one Los Angeles class nuclear powered submarine, USS Annapolis (SSN 760), two P3C Orion aircraft and a 28 member US Navy Special Forces team will also participate in the exercise.

The Indian Navy will be represented by INS Mysore, an indigenous Delhi Class guided missile destroyer and three guided missile frigates, INS Godavari, INS Brahmaputra and INS Tabar.

In addition, one Shishumar class submarine, INS Shankush, Sea Harrier fighters, other fixed and rotary wing aircraft are also scheduled to participate in the bilateral exercise. Naval cooperation epitomises the long-term strategic relationship between them.
Courtesy:The Hindu