Last week, #OpAtalanta CTF-465 warships, patrolling close to the Eastern Somali coast, near the Horn of Africa, escorted a World Food Programme charted vessel after a suspicious incident. Once again, EU NAVFOR Somalia demonstrated its readiness and reactivity as counter-piracy force.
While normally working far from each other to cover a vast area of operations, CTF 465 took advantage of this rare opportunity, having most of the Task Force 465 operating in the same area, to conduct a day of integration training among the warships and highly specialized units assigned to the force
These Force integration activities were carried out by CTF’465 units for the first time in 37th rotation. In the morning, embarked helicopters 🇮🇹IT SH-90A and 🇪🇸SH-212 conducted cross deck activities on ITS CARABINIERE and ESPS CASTILLA followed by a “maritime security and interdiction demonstration” based on a fictitious scenario in the afternoon, during which TF-465 was tasked to interdict and disrupt an illegal activity at sea and also neutralize a Water Borne Improvised Explosive Device (WB-IED). Italian and Spanish Marine units performed a helicopter sniping drill and, finally, Italian EOD divers were inserted to dispose of the WB-IED.
“Opportunities like these don’t appear very often in Operation Atalanta and must be exploited to integrate the force and build confidence among our units and teams. What I’ve seen today was a well-coordinated, highly professional and very well executed action by the Units of the Task Force”
Force Commander CTF-465, Rear Admiral Esposito
While normally working far from each other to cover a vast area of operations, CTF 465 took advantage of this rare opportunity, having most of the Task Force 465 operating in the same area, to conduct a day of integration training among the warships and highly specialized units assigned to the force
These Force integration activities were carried out by CTF’465 units for the first time in 37th rotation. In the morning, embarked helicopters 🇮🇹IT SH-90A and 🇪🇸SH-212 conducted cross deck activities on ITS CARABINIERE and ESPS CASTILLA followed by a “maritime security and interdiction demonstration” based on a fictitious scenario in the afternoon, during which TF-465 was tasked to interdict and disrupt an illegal activity at sea and also neutralize a Water Borne Improvised Explosive Device (WB-IED). Italian and Spanish Marine units performed a helicopter sniping drill and, finally, Italian EOD divers were inserted to dispose of the WB-IED.
“Opportunities like these don’t appear very often in Operation Atalanta and must be exploited to integrate the force and build confidence among our units and teams. What I’ve seen today was a well-coordinated, highly professional and very well executed action by the Units of the Task Force”
Force Commander CTF-465, Rear Admiral Esposito