SEATTLE — The U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Navy, and Royal Canadian Navy conducted a two-day joint exercise last week.
The exercise on Thursday and Friday involved U.S. and Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and crews during the exercise in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Salish Sea.
The training was conducted to prepare Royal Canadian Navy crews for deployments to support United States counter-narcotics operations in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean, according to the Coast Guard.
Participating units Coast Guard cutters Osprey, homeported in Port Townsend, and Blue Shark, homeported in Everett; a Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles MH-65 Dolphin helicopter; the Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound Joint Harbor Operations Center; Naval Air Station Whidbey Island P-8 Poseidon fixed-wing aircraft; Royal Canadian Navy Kingston-class coastal defense vessel HMCS Saskatoon; and Royal Canadian Navy Kingston-class coastal defense vessel HMCS Yellowknife.
Canadian Armed Forces ships and aircraft regularly deploy to the Caribbean and eastern Pacific regions on a rotational basis to support the United States mission to suppress drug trafficking in international waters, the Coast Guard said in a press release.
Over the past 15 years, CAF assets and crews have contributed to the disruption or seizure of more than 123 tons of cocaine, the Coast Guard said.
“This joint naval exercise between the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Navy, and Royal Canadian Navy demonstrates the strength of our commitment and partnership to secure each country’s shared maritime safety, security, and economic interests,” said Capt. Patrick Hilbert, commander of Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound.
“We are incredibly proud to support HMCS Saskatoon and Yellowknife for their upcoming deployment and look forward to future opportunities to improve our interoperability and mission effectiveness in response to threats across the Pacific region,” he added.
During a deployment scheduled for later this spring, HMCS Saskatoon and HMCS Yellowknife will work closely with the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Navy, according to the Coast Guard.
“Training with the U.S. Coast Guard proved our readiness for our upcoming operation, and I have the utmost confidence in these sailors to be exemplary representatives of Canada and accomplish mission success,” said Lt. Cmdr. Nadia Shields, task force commander and commanding officer of HMCS Saskatoon.
