September 29th Weekly Update

SHIP LOGS & EXERCISES:

Ship & Group Locations Checked & Updated (September 23 to 29)

IMCMEX 2012: (Sept 16-27) Large Mine-Countermeasures exercise in Arabian Gulf (Royal Navy ) (US Navy )

• USS Ponce (AFSB(I)-15) (US Navy )
• USS Gunston Hall (LSD-44) <Iwo Jima ARG> (US Navy )

UNITAS 2012 (Atlantic): (Sept 17-28) Multinational Naval Exercise in the Western Caribbean;

• (Sept 20) Air Defense EX @ Key West (US Navy);
• (Sept 23) practiced at sea replenishment (US Navy )
• USS Anzio (CG-68) FLAGSHIP (US Navy )
• HMS Dauntless (D33)
• USS Gravely (DDG-107)
• USS Underwood (FFG-36)
• USNS Patuxent (T-AO-201)
• HMCS Preserver (AR-8)
• Ships from Brazil, Canada, Dominican Republic, Mexico, UK
• Observers from France, Jamaica, Panama, Peru

COUGAR 2012: (October to November'12) Major Naval / Amphibious Exercise with France in Mediterranean and Adriatic (MOD )

• (Oct 1-9) Amphibious EX at SW UK (Royal Navy )
• (Oct 15+) CORSICAN LION: Joint EX with France in Mediterranean
• (November) EX with Albanian military in Adriatic Sea

• FS Charles De Gaulle CSG (CVN)
• HMS Illustrious (CVH / LHA)
• HMS Bulwark (LPD)
• HMS Northumberland (FFG)
• HMS Montrose (FFG)
• RFA Mounts Bay (LSD)
• MV Hartland Point
• 3 Commando HQ
• 45 Commando

JOINT WARRIOR: (October 1 - 12) Major Coalition exercise led by the UK near Scotland

• (Sept 26) US Ships arrive @ Faslane, Scotland (US Navy )
• (Sept 28) UK forces muster in Scotland for EX (Royal Navy )
• USS Gettysburg (CG-64)
• USS Mitscher (DDG-57)
• HMS Kent (FFG)
• HMS St. Albans (FFG)
• HMS Bangor (MCM)
• HMS Cattistock (MCM)
• HMS Hurworth (MCM)
• HMS Penzance (MCM)
• USNS Leroy Grumman (TAO-195)
• 3 UK Division
• 3 Commando
• 16 Air Assault

HMAS Canberra (LHD-01)

• (Sept 26) Hull on heavy lift ship Blue Marlin rounds Cape of Good Hope, enroute to Australia, planning to enter service in 2014 (DEFPRO )

HMS Dauntless (DDG)

• (Sept 17-28) participating in UNITAS

HMS Edinburgh

• (Sept 24) DEPLOYS to Atlantic Patrol, will be decommissioned when she returns in March 2013 (Royal Navy )

INS Vikramaditya (CV)

• (Sept 23) arrives at Sevmash Military Shipyard, Severodvinsk, Russia for boiler repairs (ITAR-TASS )

PLAN Liaoning (CV)

• (Sept 23) Carrier formally handed over to Chinese Navy at Dalian shipyard (RIA Novosti )

USS Bonhomme Richard ARG (LHD-6)

• (Sept 23) JGSDF Chief of Staff visits ARG to discuss bilateral training (US Navy )
• (Sept 24) Completes CERTEX with 31^st MEU (US Navy )
• (Sept 26) arrives at Guam

USS G. Washington CSG (CVN-73)

• (Sept 25) CSG leaves Guam

USS Iwo Jima ARG (LHD-7)

• (Sept 16-27) USS Gunston Hall (LSD-44) is participating in IMCMEX 2012 in the Gulf of Aden

USS Ponce (AFSB(I)-15)

• (Sept 16-27) Flagship for IMCMEX 2012

USS Truman (CVN-75)

• (Sept 24) begin CSSQT combat systems tests at sea

 

GROUND UNITS LOGS & EXERCISES:

US Ground units logs updated per DOD reports, up to (September 23 to 29) (DOD News Releases )

France, UK, Russia, China Army logs updated per various news releases and open sources

• KAVKAZ-2012: (September 17-23) Russian Army Ex in Caucasus (RIA Novosti ); Coastal defense exercise video (RIA Novosti )
• Chistoye Nebo 2012: (October 5-16) Air Defense Exercise in Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan; involves interception of cruise missiles (RIA Novosti )

UK

• 40 Commando – Formally takes charge of Nar-e-Saraj District in Helmand (Sept 26) (Royal Navy )

USA

• 1^st Infantry Division, 2^nd Brigade – planning to deploy to AFRICOM in Spring'13 at various locations as part of a new plan to regionally align active Army brigades to parts of Europe, Pacific and Africa, two brigades per region (Army Times )
• 41^st Brigade (NG-OR) – Unit notified to deploy to Afghanistan, potentially for 400 days, and may be one of the last units in rotation when the US leaves Afghanistan in 2014 (Army Times )
• 82^nd Airborne Division, 3^rd Brigade – returned to US on (Sept 28)
• 173^rd Airborne brigade – KIA @ Pul-E Alam, Afghanistan on (Sept 26)

 

NEWS that makes me go Hmmmm......

CHINA

• (Sept 27) China denies building a second aircraft carrier at Shanghai (RIA Novosti )
• (Sept 27) Japan says they will never compromise in the dispute over the Senkakus Islands, but will seek to avoid diplomatic deterioration (RIA Novosti )

JORDAN

• (Sept 25) Sources say the Muslim Brotherhood has targeted Jordan for demonstrations starting October 10^th if it doesn't yield to their demand to transform the kingdom into a Constitutional Monarchy (Debka )

MALI

• (Sept 27) France signals it's willingness to be a “facilitator” for the Mali government in it's upcoming struggle against the islamist rebels (UPI )

SOMALIA

• (Sept 29) Al Shabbab forces flee Kismayu, head for jungles near Afmadow, and cities Jamame, Kabsuma after Kenyan and Somali Army tighten their seige, including an amphibious assualt by Kenyan soldiers (Yahoo News ) (Sept 28 video of Kenyan amphibious assault on Kismayu (Yahoo News ))
• MAP UPDATED
   

SYRIA

• (Sept 29) Turkey warns Syria that it will take action if there is a repeat of a mortar strike on it's territory (Yahoo News )