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NATO and Royal Navy of Oman conduct exercise

ARABIAN SEA – Yesterday, the NATO counter-piracy flagship of Task Force 508 (CTF 508) HDMS ESBERN SNARE and the Royal Navy of Oman corvette RNOV AL-RASIKH conducted a naval exercise in the Arabian Sea off Salalah to improve interoperability and strengthen relations between the forces.

The exercise focused mainly on communication, navigational exercises and demonstration of boarding capabilities. Prior to the exercise, personnel from the Royal Navy of Oman visited HDMS ESBERN SNARE while in port in Salalah to complete the planning of the exercise and get an introduction to the Special Maritime Insertion Unit (SMIU), one of HDMS ESBERN SNARE’s specialised assets for counter-piracy.

During the exercise, members of the CTF 508 staff and crew members from HDMS ESBERN SNARE and RNOV AL-RASIKH took turns visiting the other’s ship. Chief of Staff for CTF 508, Commander s.g. Jens Bjørnsteen, led the group of visitors to RNOV AL-RASIKH.

"It was a great experience to visit the AL-RASIKH during the exercise,” said Commander s.g. Bjornsteen. "The ship was commissioned earlier this year as the third of its class, and these corvettes are very capable platforms and ideal for patrol operations. It has been a pleasure to observe the crew of AL-RASIKH handle the ship in a most professional manner.”