15 April 2025 

ATLANTIC OCEAN – Secretary of the Navy John Phelan embarked USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), the flagship of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 12, to observe the strike group’s Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX), Apr. 10-11. The visit was the Secretary’s first visit to an operational carrier strike group since becoming the 79th Secretary of the Navy on March 25, 2025. 

“There is nothing that compares to the strategic influence that the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group delivers to the Commander-in-Chief,” said Phelan. “All Americans should be proud of these men and women, whose grit and determination keeps our seas open and our nation safe.” 
 
The Secretary joined the strike group during Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX). The training environment delivers opportunities for carrier strike group commanders to integrate highly-capable, multi-mission teams through live, virtual, and constructive presentations of threats. CSG-12 coordinates and directs the actions of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG 81), Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 8 with its nine accompanying squadrons, and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 2 and its four guided-missile destroyers. 
 
“I can’t think of a better time, place, or team to introduce Secretary Phelan to strike group operations at sea,” said Rear Adm. Paul Lanzilotta. “It’s an honor and a privilege to lead this team, and I am grateful for the opportunity to highlight the team’s hard work, tactical acumen, and warfighting spirit to the Secretary.” 
 
COMPTUEX is the Joint Force’s most complex training event which underscores the Navy’s commitment to deliver naval task forces for sustained high-end Joint and combined combat. The visit was also an opportunity for the crew of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) to present the ship to senior leadership. 
 
“It is a great honor to host Secretary Phelan during his first trip to a ready aircraft carrier,” said Capt. Rick Burgess, commanding officer of Gerald R. Ford. “The crew demonstrated Ford’s ability to project power on demand anywhere across the globe.” 
 
Following its return from its maiden deployment in January 2024, Ford completed a maintenance and training cycle. 
 
“As the first aircraft carrier to deter aggression during the Israel-Hamas conflict, you stood tall in support of Israel’s right to defend itself, and you made America proud. But you didn’t just deter. You made a difference. and you showed the world what American naval power and strength looks like.” said Phelan. 
 
The Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group delivers the Joint force and Commander-in-Chief the combat capability to deter, and if necessary, defeat America’s adversaries in support of national security and economic prosperity. The strike group is comprised of its flagship, the world’s largest and most capable aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG 81), Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 8 with nine accompanying squadrons, and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 2 and its four guided-missile destroyers. 
 
For more information about the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), visit its official webpage at https://www.airlant.usff.navy.mil/cvn78/, or its Defense Visual Information Distribution site at www.dvids.net/CVN78. Follow the ship’s operations and upcoming deployment on Facebook at @USSGeraldRFord or on Instagram at @cvn78_grford. 

From U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area 

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — The crew of Coast Guard Cutter James (WMSL 754) returned to their home port in North Charleston, Saturday, following a 112-day, multi-phase deployment, where crew members conducted counter-narcotic operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and participated in joint exercises with the U.S. Navy in the Atlantic Ocean.  

James’ crew spent their first two months underway in support of Joint Interagency Task Force – South (JIATF-S) while on patrol in the Coast Guard 11th District’s area of operations.   

Working alongside additional Coast Guard units and multiagency partners, the crew of James interdicted drug smuggling operations in the vast ocean off the Pacific Coast of Mexico, Central and South America. Crew member efforts significantly disrupted illegal narcotics trafficking with 11 interdictions at sea, seizing more than 48,000 pounds of illicit drugs valued at $510 million and apprehending 34 suspected drug smugglers.  

Of note, crew members interdicted three go-fast vessels in a single day, seizing more than 13,000 pounds of cocaine and capturing nine suspected narco-traffickers.   

On Wednesday, James’ crew and multiagency partners offloaded the drugs at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. During a press conference, Attorney General Pamela Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel delivered remarks alongside U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Southern Command leadership to highlight the unprecedented collaboration between agencies and importance of preventing these drugs from reaching America.   

While deployed, the crew of James partnered with the Ecuadorian Coast Guard to promote regional maritime governance and assist in combatting the international drug trade. For 30 days, James embarked an Ecuadorian Coast Guard officer, underscoring the success of the two nations’ recent bilateral “Agreement Between the United States of America and the Republic of Ecuador Concerning Counter Illicit Transnational Maritime Activity Operations.” It was signed in 2023 and entered in force on Feb. 23, 2024. This shiprider provision of the agreement was enacted on four occasions, providing James with additional authorities and a strategic edge in countering suspected drug smugglers, efforts that greatly advanced regional maritime security.   

For the remainder of the patrol, James participated in the Carrier Strike Group 12, Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX). COMPTUEX is the Joint Force’s most complex integrated training event and prepares naval task forces for sustained high-end Joint and combined combat.  

COMPTUEX was an all-hands, round-the-clock effort aboard James, especially the Combat Information Center team. Within the exercise, James operated in a contested maritime environment alongside the Navy to meet Fleet Commander requirements. The exercise also presented an opportunity for James to display the Coast Guard’s unique capabilities and authorities while operating alongside elements of the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, including USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG 81), Carrier Air Wing (CVW-8), and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 2.  

“The Coast Guard’s integration in exercises like COMPTUEX is so important because it simulates realistic threat environments and high-stress situations, allowing members of the Carrier Strike Group to practice complex tactical maneuvers, communication and decision-making under pressure,” said Capt. Thomas Rodzewicz, commanding officer of James. “One of the Coast Guard’s statutory missions is Defense Readiness. With that comes supporting the National Military Strategy and Department of Defense movements and operations.”  

JIATF-S, in conjunction with partner nations, works to target, detect and monitor illicit drug trafficking within the joint operating area. The organization facilitates the interdiction and apprehension of illicit traffickers to dismantle transnational criminal organizations while reducing the flow of drugs to the public. Once interdiction becomes imminent, the law enforcement phase of the operation begins, and control of the operation shifts to the U.S. Coast Guard throughout the interdiction and apprehension. Interdictions in the Eastern Pacific Ocean are performed by members of the U.S. Coast Guard under the authority and control of the Coast Guard’s Eleventh District, headquartered in Alameda, California.    

James is one of four 418-foot, Legend-class national security cutters homeported in North Charleston, South Carolina. The cutter’s primary missions are counter-drug operations and defense readiness.  

James falls under the command of U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area, which is based in Portsmouth, Virginia. U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area oversees all Coast Guard operations east of the Rocky Mountains to the Arabian Gulf. In addition to surge operations, they also allocate ships to deploy to the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific to combat transnational organized crime and illicit maritime activity.   

WASHINGTON, D.C. – April 10, 2025 – World Shipping Council President and CEO Joe Kramek said he welcomes the U.S. administration’s plan to rebuild American shipbuilding through strategic public-private investment, workforce development, and targeted incentives to rebuild shipbuilding capacity.  

“We want to work constructively with the administration on its efforts to revitalize the U.S. maritime industry,” Kramek said.  

“As we’ve said previously, revitalizing the U.S. maritime industry will require a comprehensive, realistic, and sustained strategy developed by the administration and Congress and enacted through legislation.”  

“The executive order outlines several encouraging elements that reflect a serious focus on rebuilding the American maritime industry,” Kramek said.   

“Given the direction of this executive order and the comments made by the U.S. Trade Representative earlier this week, the World Shipping Council is hopeful the USTR recognizes that alternative measures to impose retroactive port fees would disadvantage all aspects of the supply chain — from consumers to farmers, from energy producers to manufacturers,” Kramek said. 

WSC member lines, who are container and vehicle carriers, are significant participants in the U.S. maritime industry. WSC member lines contribute 75 percent of the vessels enrolled in the U.S. Maritime Security Program, carry 65 percent of seaborne U.S. trade, and have significant shipbuilding experience.  

WSC members are integral to the U.S. economy and the U.S. maritime sector. Liner shipping contributes $2 trillion to the U.S. economy and supports 6.4 million U.S. jobs paying more than $420 billion in annual wages.  

“The World Shipping Council stands ready to support the administration with constructive proposals to help revitalize the U.S. maritime industry,” Kramek concluded.   

NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, Va. – The U.S Navy expeditionary sea base USS Hershel “Woody” Williams (ESB 4) returns to Naval Station Norfolk, April 10, 2025, after operating forward deployed for almost five years, supporting U.S. Navy and allied efforts in the U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa / U.S. Sixth Fleet area of operations. 

Hershel “Woody” Williams returns to Norfolk’s waters with a hybrid-manned crew of 44 Military Sealift Command (MSC) civil service mariners who operated, navigated, and maintained the vessel and 85 U.S Navy Sailors, Blue and Gold crews, who alternated manning the vessel and allowing for continuous strategic deterrence patrols. 
 
“This is a unique opportunity to welcome home a hard-working ship from its historic tenure forward-deployed, and to welcome home its crew – its heart, soul and lifeblood – in classic Navy fashion,” said Rear Adm. Dave Walt, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 2, who was on hand to welcome home the Hershel “Woody” Williams crew. 

“This crew has punched above its weight and impressed leadership with its hard work, resourcefulness, and dedication.” 
 
The evolution marks the completion of 59 months as a Forward Deployed Naval Force (FDNF) vessel homeported in Souda Bay, Crete, Greece, a journey that began in 2020. Hershel “Woody” Williams will spend a week at Naval Station Norfolk, offloading fuel before shifting to the East Coast Repair and Fabrication Shipyard in Newport News, Va., where the ship will be in lay berth awaiting its next tasking. 
 
Built as a highly flexible mobile platform, capable of operating across a broad range of military sea-based operations, Hershel “Woody” Williams had several noteworthy highlights throughout this deployment. 
 
In 2020, Hershel “Woody” Williams became the first U.S. Navy warship assigned to AFRICOM due to the ship’s ability to support maritime security and humanitarian operations. 
 
In 2021, during AFRICOM’s largest, premier, joint, annual exercise, known as African Lion, Hershel “Woody” Williams participated in a key leader engagement with Morocco Armed Forces, hosted by Morocco, Tunisia, and Senegal. 

“These engagements are critical as they allow Navy leaders to interact with partner nations to foster trust and build long-term partnerships,” said MSC’s ESB Project Officer William Revak. 
 
In 2022, Williams joined forces with partners and allies for Obangame Express 22, the largest multinational maritime exercise in Western Africa, to improve communication and information sharing and to increase partner nation capability to further advance maritime security and stability, said MSC’s Program Manager, Prepositioning Ships, Lora Caldwell. Additionally, the ESB-4 platform was used to conduct visit, board, search, and seizure (VBSS) drills with French soldiers. 

“VBSS training with partner nations contributes greatly to a more stable and secure global maritime environment,” Caldwell said. 
 
In 2023, Hershel “Woody” Williams conducted humanitarian and disaster relief operations, delivering 113 pallets of disaster relief supplies, totaling nearly 40,000 pounds, to The Ministry of Interior Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency in Mersin, Türkiye for those citizens impacted by the Feb. 6, earthquakes. 
 
In 2024, the Gold-military crew and MSC’s civilian mariners conducted community relation events in Tema, Ghana to continue building their mutual commitment to security and stability in the region which helps to enhance the Navy’s operational readiness. The Hershel “Woody” Williams crew also conducted a theater security cooperation mission during the ship’s visit to Luanda, Angola. Likewise, they managed regional cooperation operations (logistical and personnel support) while in Port Victoria, Seychelles. While there, the ship hosted U.S. Ambassador Henry Jardine and Brig. Gen. Michael Rosette, chief of the Seychelles Defense Forces. 

“We will continue to share information with the United States of America in the fight against illegal activities within the Indian Ocean,” Rosette stated in Seychelles Nation, dated Sept. 4, 2024. 
 
Throughout Williams 59-month deployment, MSC’s CVIMARS and the Navy’s Blue and Gold crews were instrumental in further enhancing Navy readiness, strengthening partnerships, and improving the combined capabilities of the U.S. Navy and partner nations’ responses to public crisis, Caldwell said. 
 
ESBs primarily support aviation mine countermeasures and expeditionary forces missions. Additional ship features include a large flight deck and hanger with four aviation operating spots capable of handling MH-535E equivalent helicopters and MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, berthing and messing accommodations, workspaces and ordnance storage for embarked forces. 
 
ESB 4 is named in honor of Chief Warrant Officer Hershel “Woody” Williams, a decorated U.S. Marine who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Iwo Jima during World War II. 

MOBILE, Ala. — Austal USA welcomed Rear Admiral Paul Carroll, director of Submarine Acquisition at the UK Ministry of Defense, at the company’s Mobile, Ala. shipyard yesterday. Rear Admiral Carroll visited to Austal USA to see the company’s facility and the submarine manufacturing efforts supporting the Submarine Industrial Base in conjunction with his meetings with Program Executive Office for Submarines on bi-lateral industrial base efforts.  

While at Austal USA, Carroll toured the company’s ship manufacturing facility and discussed Austal USA’s progress with fabricating and outfitting modules for both Columbia- and Virginia-class submarines with members of the company’s senior leadership team.  During his tour, he experienced first-hand Austal USA’s talented workforce and witnessed the progress being made on completing the new submarine module manufacturing facility (MMF 3). MMF 3 will provide 369,600 square feet of indoor manufacturing space purpose-built to manufacture submarine modules. 

“It was a special honor to host Rear Admiral Carroll and to show him all the work we’ve been doing in support of expanding the submarine industrial base to meet the needs of the U.S. Navy and meet our AUKUS commitments,” stated Austal USA President Michelle Kruger. “We’re proud of our success and balanced portfolio of work, including submarine module production, and we are excited to partner with our allies to strengthen our combined naval forces.” 

Austal USA, celebrating 25 years in Mobile, has delivered 32 ships to the Navy since 2009 and has 10 vessels currently in production. In addition to MMF 3, a new final assembly building to manufacture Navy and Coast Guard surface ships is under construction.  When complete the two new facilities will add over 600,000 square feet of indoor production area and add 2,000 new jobs in the region. 

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — At the HII booth during the U.S. Navy League’s annual Sea Air Space 2025 Expo, representatives from five Australian companies were presented with certificates recognizing their successful participation in HII-led supplier development initiatives and received a Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) supplier identification number. 

The supplier development initiatives include state-led Supplier Capability Uplift Programs, which will feed into the new Australian Submarine Supplier Qualification (AUSSQ) program, announced by Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles on March 6, 2025. 

Eric Chewning, executive vice president of strategy & development for HII; Cullen Glass, vice president of supply chain management for HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding; and Michael Lempke, president of the global security group at HII’s Mission Technologies division, presented certificates to: 

• Century Engineering (South Australia) 

• MacTaggart Scott Australia (South Australia) 

• Hofmann Engineering (Western Australia) 

• Levett Engineering (South Australia) 

• VEEM Ltd. (Western Australia) 

The supplier identification number signifies that, upon full certification through the AUSSQ process, these companies are qualified to participate in the NNS supply chain in support of nuclear-powered submarine construction. 

Also in attendance were Rear Adm. Ian Murray, Australian Defence attaché; Linda Dawson, deputy director general for industry, science and innovation, Western Australian Government; and Sir Nick Hine, executive director of H&B Defence and former second sea lord of the Royal Navy. 

This milestone reflects deepening industrial integration under the AUKUS trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. HII’s work, under contract with the Australian Government, supports the development of sovereign industrial capabilities and enables Australian companies to enter U.S. defense supply chains. 

A representative from Lockheed Martin said at Sea-Air-Space 2025 the firm is “ready now” to help the nation stand up the “Golden Dome” missile defense system, a new priority of the Trump administration that resurrects some aspects of the Reagan-era Strategic Defense Initiative.

“What does it mean to be ready now? I think it means we have systems that are fielded, they’re operational, they’re proven,” said Dan Tenney, vice president of Strategy and Business Development for Lockheed Martin’s Rotary and Mission Systems section. “They’re actually in operation today.”

A Jan. 27 White House executive order calling for America to develop its own version of Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system unleashed a flood of activity in the defense community. This comes as the government develops the fiscal 2026 defense budget request to Congress, which reportedly could approach $1 trillion, to jumpstart Golden Dome and to support the many other defense priorities.

A March 19 story published by DOD News confirmed the Pentagon is working to bring the Golden Dome from concept to reality.

“Consistent with protecting the homeland and per President Trump’s [executive order], we’re working with the industrial base and [through] supply chain challenges associated with standing up the Golden Dome,” said Steven J. Morani, acting undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, in the article. “This is like the monster systems engineering problem. This is the monster integration problem.”

This is also a costly proposition. So far, the United States has funneled around $3 billion to Israel — an 8,500-square-mile country roughly the size of New Jersey — for batteries, interceptors and other costs related to Iron Dome, which it stood up in 2011, according to a 2023 Congressional Research Service report.

Establishing a missile defense system covering the entire United States — with a land area of nearly 3.8 million square miles — is estimated to cost billions of dollars annually and present many more barriers to success.

Nevertheless, Tenney said Bethesda-based Lockheed Martin is well positioned to assist.

“We think the future is really going to be around this integration,” Tenney said. “We do operate from seabed to space,” he said, with deep experience developing systems in global positioning, missile warning and tracking, radar, missile defense, high-energy lasers and other capabilities.

“When I think about Golden Dome,” Tenney said, “in so many ways I think we’re going to use existing systems but bring them together.”

From Seaman Apprentice Mario Reyes Villatoro, April 9, 2025

NAVAL BASE GUAM – The submarine tender USS Emory S. Land (AS 39) returned to its homeport in Apra Harbor, Guam, April 9, 2025. Emory S. Land’s arrival marked the completion of its expeditionary submarine tender deployment, which began May 17, 2024.

Emory S. Land conducted 17 port calls in the Indo-Pacific region over 11 months, strengthening relations with many allies and partners such as Australia, Japan, Republic of Korea, and Singapore. During its deployment, Emory S. Land played a pivotal role supporting Pillar 1 of the AUKUS security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

In the first half of deployment, Emory S. Land conducted a Submarine Tendered Maintenance Period, or STMP, with the Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Hawaii (SSN 776) in HMAS Stirling, Western Australia, Australia, from Aug. 22 to Sept. 10, 2024. Royal Australian Navy Sailors who had been attached to the submarine tender since January 2024 took the lead on conducting repairs aboard Hawaii. The STMP was the first time Australians had ever performed maintenance on a nuclear-powered submarine in Australia. Emory S. Land Sailors also worked in conjunction with the Royal Australian Navy’s Fleet Support Unit-West, which provides repair and maintenance services to the Australian fleet.

“It is an honor and pleasure to return home to Guam. The entire crew, military personnel and civil service mariners, have performed exceptionally well over the last 11 months and have lived up to the ship’s motto “Tireless Worker of the Sea,” and are ready to come home and enjoy quality time back at home with family and friends,” said Capt. Kenneth Holland, the ship’s commanding officer. “This whole deployment has been an incredible journey, to be able to form closer ties with our allies and interact with the locals by hosting tours of our ship and taking part in community relation events. It’s all been a wonderful experience.”

Emory S. Land departed from its final port of the deployment, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, on April 2nd, 2025. While in port, Emory S. Land provided logistical support to the Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Minnesota (SSN 783).

“I was glad we returned to Darwin and got to enjoy Australia again, and it was a great to spearhead support for the nuclear submarine in Darwin for the first time in 27 years,” said Chief Gunner’s Mate Brett Peterman. “I can’t wait to enjoy some rest and relaxation, and to spend time with the family, before getting back into supporting Guam deployed submarines.”

During its deployment, Emory S. Land visited Darwin, Cairns, Sydney, Eden, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth in Australia; Sasebo and Okinawa in Japan; Palau, Busan, Brunei, Singapore, Thailand, and Subic Bay, Philippines. In each port, Emory S. Land Sailors conducted community relations events by assisting local school programs, participating in beach cleanups, sorting food at foodbanks, and much more.

“It was a unique opportunity to conduct so many community relations events across the region. Reflecting on our tour, I believe the real impact is learning about the difference we’ve made with our allies around the world during each event,” said Religious Program Specialist Seaman Hunter Stewart. “The local community members were always grateful for our team.”

Guam is home to the U.S. Navy’s only submarine tenders, USS Emory S. Land (AS 39) and USS Frank Cable (AS 40), as well as four Los Angeles-class attack and one Virginia-class attack submarines. The submarine tenders provide maintenance, hotel services and logistical support to submarines and surface ships in the U.S. 5th and 7th Fleet areas of operation. The submarines and tenders are maintained as part of the U.S. Navy’s forward-deployed submarine force and are readily capable of meeting global operational requirements.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Saildrone announced it is establishing a European subsidiary in Denmark to address the urgent need for maritime domain awareness in European waters.

Announced at the Maritime Industry Symposium at the Danish Embassy in Washington, D.C., Saildrone Denmark will be a European entity, based in Copenhagen, Denmark. This strategic expansion reflects Saildrone’s commitment to supporting European allies in enhancing maritime situational awareness through advanced autonomous technologies.

“Given the recent sabotage of critical undersea infrastructure in the Baltic Sea, the need for permanent maritime domain awareness has never been greater,” said Richard Jenkins, Saildrone founder and CEO. “I am delighted to announce the establishment of Saildrone Denmark to facilitate our European operations and support allied nations, at this critical time for regional maritime security.”

With increasing geopolitical tensions and rising activity in the Baltic Sea, the need for persistent maritime intelligence is paramount. Saildrone unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) offer unmatched endurance and resilience, capable of operating autonomously for extended durations in the world’s harshest maritime environments. Equipped with a suite of advanced sensors, these systems deliver real-time ISR above and below the surface — enabling the detection of anomalous behavior, monitoring of vessel traffic and the protection of national interests in strategically sensitive waters.

In addition to surface surveillance, Saildrone vehicles will conduct detailed ocean floor mapping, delivering a critical advantage in monitoring and securing subsea infrastructure such as pipelines, communication cables, and offshore energy platforms. Pairing high-resolution seafloor imagery with proprietary machine learning algorithms enables early detection of potential threats or anomalies, enhancing Europe’s ability to safeguard its undersea assets against both conventional and hybrid threats.

Denmark is uniquely situated in the center of the European maritime environment, with coastlines on both the Baltic and North Seas. Saildrone Denmark will be the hub for all European operations, employing local staff to provide support, training, and mission planning capabilities to regional customers and partners.

From U.S. 3rd Fleet, April 7, 2025

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii — The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Shiloh (CG 67) returned to its home port, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, April 4, 2025.

Shiloh, in partnership with an embarked Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) from USCG Pacific Tactical Law Enforcement Team, conducted several boarding and intelligence gathering operations in the South Pacific in support of Oceania Maritime Security Initiative (OMSI) 2025. OMSI is a Secretary of Defense program that leverages Department of Defense assets transiting the region to increase the USCG’s maritime domain awareness, ultimately supporting maritime law enforcement in Oceania.

From February 2025 to April 2025, Shiloh patrolled the South Pacific, strengthening relationship with partner nations and ensured maritime stability and security in the region. These actions were carried out through the enforcement of provisions of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention (WCPFC) and bilateral law enforcement agreements it has with specific countries in the region.

Captain Bryan E. Geisert is the commanding officer aboard Shiloh.

“I am proud of what our crew accomplished and the strong partnership with our Coast Guard Shipmates’. It is a critical and unique opportunity to assist in ensuring marine resources are protected through the enforcement of international laws to enhance regional stability.” said Capt. Geisert.

Shiloh is operating in the U.S. 3rd Fleet area of responsibility in support of the security and stability of the Indo-Pacific region. Shiloh is assigned to Commander, Naval Surface Group Middle Pacific, a combat-ready force that protects and defends the collective maritime interest of its allies and partners in the region.