The US Navy’s Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group (TRCSG) has carried out a ‘live-fire exercise’ in the Indian Ocean.
According to US Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), the exercise saw the use of different kinds of weapons systems.
Go deeper with GlobalData
The CSG units employed the weapons to defeat ‘inflatable surface targets’.
INDOPACOM noted that Strike Fighter Squadron 87 (VFA-87) F/A-18E Super Hornets and VFA-146 used Mark 76 inert bombs.
Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 8 (HSC-8) MH-60S Sea Hawks and Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 75 (HSM-75) MH-60R Sea Hawks employed crew-served weapons.
Furthermore, Mark 45 5in guns on board Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill and Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Russell fired inert rounds.
Carrier Strike Group Nine commander rear admiral Doug Verissimo said: “This exercise was a great opportunity for the strike group to practice integrating its air wing and surface assets to prosecute a surface target.
“We continue to keep our tactical warfighting skills sharp to demonstrate our commitment to our allies and partners in the region.”
The TRCSG is deployed to the US 7th Fleet, the US Navy’s largest forward-deployed fleet, to conduct a wide range of operations that support ‘humanitarian efforts and freedom of the seas’.
7th Fleet routinely ‘operates and interacts’ with 35 maritime nations. It is engaged in conducting missions to ‘preserve and protect a free and open Indo-Pacific region’.
USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 11, and Destroyer Squadron 23 are included in the TRCSG strike group.
The TRCSG also consists of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS John Finn (DDG 113).
In January this year, TRCSG conducted routine operations in the disputed South China Sea.
