May 2012, Issue 166 - Royal New Zealand Navy

information on local fishing and trading vessel
activity, and responding to intelligence cueing
of suspected maritime terrorist related activity
such as narcotics smuggling. The number of
ships assigned to CTF 150 varies according
to the ebb and flow of national contributions
with ship patrol cycles being determined by
national port visit programs. At all times our
units are ready to respond to any piracy event
(in support of CTF 151 – the counter piracy
mission) or to render humanitarian aid and
assistance to vessels in distress.
“One of our most notable successes
has been the interdiction of a dhow in the
North Arabian Sea carrying 240kgs of illegal
narcotics with an estimated street value of
US$5 million,” said CAPT Cook. “The RAN
ANZAC class frigate HMAS PARRAMATTA
conducted the interception, boarding and
search of the vessel which resulted in the
discovery of the narcotics in bags of flour.
The illicit cargo was disposed of at the scene.
The result was the first successful narcotics
interdiction by a CMF ship in two and half
years and was due to the cooperation and
planning efforts of many stakeholders.”
Another highlight was Focused Operation
SCIMITAR ANZAC in the Southern Red Sea/
Gulf of Aden region involving a task group of
four ships under the tactical control of CAPT
Cook and his afloat command element. The
purpose of this four-day maritime security
operation was to ensure the safe unimpeded
passage of merchant shipping through this key
strategic waterway and to collect pattern of life
information on local maritime activity. The task
counter-terror op
group consisted of HMS DARING (the new RN
first of class Type 45 Destroyer), Pakistan Naval
Ship BABUR (ex RN Type 21 frigate), HMAS
PARRAMATTA and Royal Fleet Auxiliary WAVE
KNIGHT, and was supported by USN P3 aircraft
providing area surveillance.
This activity was notable for the embarkation
of the command element on HMS DARING
which is on its maiden seven-month
deployment. This was the first such occasion
that the ship has acted as a command
platform. With regional engagement being
a strong line of operation for CMF and CTF
150, personnel from the Yemeni Navy and
Coast Guard were embarked in HMS DARING
and HMAS PARRAMATTA to provide their
local knowledge of the physical environment
and maritime activity. This is Yemen’s front
yard and their knowledge of the pattern of
life is essential for CTF 150 establishing the
indicators of potential terrorist maritime activity
in this key part of the area of operations.
SCIMITAR ANZAC also provided the
opportunity to travel to Djibouti, a former
French territory which gained independence in
1977. It is a tiny country, strategically situated
between the entrance to the Red Sea and the
western edge of the Gulf of Aden. Djibouti has
a significant regional port of the same name
which is the gateway to North Africa as the
country borders Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia.
The port also provides a key logistics hub for
the various naval forces operating in the Gulf
of Aden and Somali Basin on counter piracy
operations namely CTF 151, EUNAVFOR, NATO
and the independent nations such as Russia,
Japan and China which undertake convoy
escort of their national shipping. Djibouti
is also the location of Camp Lemonnier; the
supporting base for Combined Joint Task
Force – Horn of Africa from which US and
coalition forces conduct stability operations
in NE Africa.
At the time of writing this article, the
contingent has passed the two thirds mark
of the deployment. “We remain focused on
employing the ships and aircraft under our
command to best meet the counter terrorism
aims of the CTF 150 mission,” said CAPT
Cook. “We are hopeful that our concerted
efforts will result in another successful
narcotics interdiction before we hand over
command to Pakistan on 19 April 2012.”
Both RNZN officers are thoroughly enjoying
the camaraderie of our RAN cousins and the
strong professional relationship that binds this
contingent together.
News updates on the activities of the
RAN led CTF 150 can be found by googling
Combined Maritime Forces.
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