The prelude to a major manoeuvre always starts with a display: Fifteen ships from the Royal Australian Navy, the Royal Canadian Navy, the German Navy, the Maritime Self-Defence Forces of Japan and the United States Navy sailed in formation on 21 November on the occasion of Japan's ANNUALEX 2021 - with the two helicopter/aircraft carriers in front and our frigate BAYERN in between. The screw water indicates a Passex, past the starboard side of the US carrier USS CARL VINSON.
German participation frigate BAYERN
The annual exercise will take place in the Philippine Sea south of the Japanese islands until the end of November. The German Navy accepted the invitation for the first time this year - and, according to Vice Admiral Kay-Achim Schönbach, Inspector of the Navy, intends to continue its Indo-Pacific voyages abroad with a frigate and a supply ship on a biennial basis in future. However, the U.S. Naval Institute (USNI) comments on this long-awaited announcement by the Pacific states with a cautious view of the new German government that is currently being formed.
German-Australian lead in the East China Sea
Prior to this multinational exercise, the BAYERN and the Australian frigate HMAS WARRAMUNGA were already travelling on separate routes in the East China Sea to conduct reconnaissance and surveillance as part of the sanctions imposed by the United Nations on North Korea.
Participating units
The host has not only provided its helicopter carrier JS IZUMO for the exercise, but also eight other destroyers and a submarine. The USA is represented by the carrier USS CARL VINSON, the cruiser USS CHAMPLAIN, the destroyer USS STOCKDALE, the supply ships USNS RAPPAHANNOCK and USNS JOHN ERICSSON and an unnamed LOS ANGELES-class submarine. Canada is participating with the frigate HMCS WINNIPEG, Australia with the destroyer HMAS BRISBANE and the frigate HMAS WARRAMUNGA.
Maritime Training Activity (MTA) Malaysia 2021
At the same time, other manoeuvres are taking place in the Greater Western Pacific, such as MTA Malaysia 2021, where the Littoral Combat Ship USS TULSA, a P-8A Poseidon and two Malaysian units, the frigate KD LEKIU (1999, Yarrow Glasgow) and the corvette KD LEKIR (1984, HDW Kiel), are meeting in the Strait of Malacca to temporarily share responsibility for regional security in the East Asian straits and shipping lanes. Also on board are so-called Subject Matter Experts from the European Union's "Critical Maritime Routes Indo-Pacific" initiative (EU-CRIMARIO). They will familiarise themselves with the operational area and get to know the driving forces (including the US 7th Fleet) and the participating nations in the region for future cooperation.
Surprise guest at ASEAN
To the delight of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), Russia has announced its participation in one of its exercise programmes for the first time. The destroyer ADMIRAL PANTELEYEV (UDALOY class) of the Russian Pacific Fleet is due to splice into the series within Indonesian territorial waters off North Sumatra from 1 to 3 December. After China (2018, 2019) and the USA (2019), this makes Russia the third partner to take part in manoeuvres by this regional organisation. The projects planned for 2020 had to be cancelled due to the pandemic. However, not everything is running smoothly again: until a few days ago, the ASEAN units participating this year had not yet been named. So - who wants to play along?
Arrival of the German frigate BAYERN in Tokyo on 5.11.21 Photo: vcg.cn
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