Security Exercise News

In the United States, it is a frustrating time to be in the government shipbuilding business. Even though America depends upon maritime commerce and faces growing security risks at sea, shipbuilding is just not a major national focus.Up to now, shipbuilders have had it pretty good. For the past several years, big naval shipbuilders have enjoyed steady growth and strong performance. In 2020, Huntington Ingalls Industries enjoyed record revenue of $9.4 billion, an 8.5% margin and gave a quarter billion back to shareholders in dividends and stock buybacks.

Exercise LUMBAS is an annual bi-lateral exercise between the Australia and the Philippines, and is being undertaken concurrently to the Royal Australian Navy’s visit to the region. The long standing and close working relationship between Australia and the Philippines was reinforced with amphibious giant, HMAS Adelaide hosting a visit and capability briefing to participants. Royal Australian Navy, Philippine Navy and other Philippine Government Agencies aim to develop and enhance procedures for the conduct of maritime support operations and maritime interdiction operation throughout the Philippines as a result. HMA Ships Adelaide and Darwin were in the Philippines as part of a joint task group deployment to the region focussed on international engagement.

A regional workshop focusing on this year’s World Maritime Day theme - Connecting Ships, Ports and People – has been held in Buenos Aires, Argentina (26-29 June). The event, organized by International Maritime Organization (IMO) in collaboration with the Argentine Maritime Authority (Prefectura Naval Argentina), aimed to promote cooperation between ports and designated authorities of participating countries through an open discussion and by sharing experiences and best practices related to maritime security. The workshop also reviewed the implementation of maritime security in the region and evaluating new or evolving threats. Specific subjects addressed included the establishment of national maritime security committees…

Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand and the United Kingdom have completed Five Power Defence Arrangements exercise in international waters, off the coast of Malaysia as part of the longest standing multilateral arrangement in South East Asia. Acting Chief of Joint Operations, Major General Stuart Smith, said Exercise BERSAMA SHIELD was an important opportunity for the Australian Defence Force to strengthen cooperation with other nations. “Around 300 Australian personnel have taken part, drawn from Navy, Army and Air Force,” Major General Smith said. “All have worked seamlessly with other members of the participating nations through a variety of exercise scenarios.

International Maritime Organization (IMO)’s whole of government approach to maritime security, as an enabler for sustainable development of the blue economy, is being played out in the latest maritime security table-top exercise. The exercise in Tanga, United Republic of Tanzania (9-10 November) is highlighting the need for a unified approach to implementation of maritime security measures, with particular reference to IMO’s SOLAS chapter XI-2 and ISPS Code. During the exercise, participants from a range of Government agencies, including the port sector, are confronted with various threats and challenges to maritime security, involving policy decisions, crisis/emergency management and response.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is leading a maritime security table-top exercise in Mombasa, Kenya (April 21-22) as part of the Organization’s continuing work to implement the Djibouti Code of Conduct. National officials from key ministries and departments are taking part in a range of evolving scenarios involving both routine business and during an incident, which aim to promote an integrated, whole-of-government approach to maritime security measures and maritime law enforcement. This includes supporting Kenya’s national capacity to perform coastguard functions through inter-agency cooperation and development of maritime strategies and contingency plans.

Detroit Coast Guard members are participating in a Southeast Michigan Area Maritime Security Committee multi-agency table-top exercise Wednesday at the Detroit Fire Department Regional Training Center. The purpose of this exercise is to test plans and policies of federal, provincial, state and local area agencies in response to a transportation security incident. In accordance with the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program, a table-top exercise is a discussion based exercise. There will not be any resources deployed directly as a result of this exercise. More than 150 participants from 50 agencies are expected to participate in the exercise.

Ten countries jointed together with its naval forces in Langkawi, Malaysia, to begin a two-day Multinational Maritime Security Exercise, says a report in Bernama. A total of 19 naval vessels of various classes are being used by the forces of Brunei Darussalam, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea and the United States in the exercise. The program includes discussions among the participants to resolve any obstacles that could hamper the smooth running of the mass field training, says Malaysia's Chief of Navy Admiral Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Jaafar, who launched the exercise at the Royal Malaysian Navy facility. The event is held in conjunction with the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace 2015 (LIMA'15) Exhibition.

U.S. and Canadian military personnel and government civilian agencies are scheduled to participate in Exercise Frontier Sentinel 14 from Friday through Oct. 24. The full-scale exercise is the final phase of a three-part scenario that focuses on maritime homeland security. FS 14 is a combined U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area, Canadian Joint Task Force Atlantic, and U.S. Navy Fleet Forces Command exercise designed to test the coordinated response against a maritime threat to North American ports. “This exercise tests the ability of U.S. Coast Guard, Navy, Canadian forces and civilian agencies to successfully respond to a complex maritime threat to the homeland," said Vice Adm. William Lee, Coast Guard Atlantic Area commander.

DNV GL inform that Torsten Schramm, COO Division Germany, Middle East & Asia at DNV GL presented the certificate to Björn Sprotte, Global Head of Maritime Services, Rickmers Shipmanagement, at the at the DNV GL booth during the current SMM 2014. “By meeting the 5 Star Excellence requirements Rickmers Ship Management demonstrates its strong commitment to maximising the sustainability, energy efficiency and safety of its ships. Sustained investment in state of the art technology and advanced management systems make the company one of the most reliable players in the industry today and give it a competitive edge. We look forward to continuing on our work with Rickmers Shipmanagement in the future”, said Torsten Schramm.

Scheduled for Thursday and Friday, federal, state, local and Canadian law enforcement partners will be brought together in a multi-agency exercise designed to prepare for and prevent cross-border terrorist and criminal activity on the Niagara River, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. There are no known threats against the area, but boaters may notice increased assets of law enforcement on the water. Organized by The Monroe County Emergency Management Office, the multi-jurisdictional exercise will be sponsored by The Department of Homeland Security.

Maritime forces from the United States, 10 East African and two European nations, along with several international organizations, have just commenced the multinational maritime exercise Cutlass Express 2013 off the coast of East Africa. Exercise Cutlass Express 2013, held in several operational areas in waters off East Africa, is an at-sea maritime exercise designed to improve cooperation, tactical expertise and information sharing practices among participating nations in order to increase maritime safety and security in the region.

The Coast Guard inform that many organizations with a stake in the viability of the maritime transportation system, are participating in an annual security exercise as part of an Area Maritime Security Training and Exercise Program, at the Barbour’s Cut Cruise Terminal in Houston, 25, September 2013. AMSTEP exercises can range from simple discussion-based drills to complex full-scale evolutions. SECUREX 2013 will be a functional exercise with a scenario that involves a simulated "dirty bomb" and will test the various Incident Command System functions in a real-time environment.

The Royal Australian Navy Ships HMAS Sydney, Warramunga, and Sirius, which are based on both the east and west coast of Australia, have concluded their participation in Exercise Blue Raptor in the Northwest Shelf area. Exercise Blue Raptor was a maritime security exercise which tested communications, procedures and protocols between the Navy ships and other units of the Australian Defense Force with the oil and gas installations in the area. The exercise is part of a number of routine patrols conducted by the Navy in the region and was supported by a Royal Australian Air Force AP-3C Orion.

The Navy wrapped up its largest annual security exercise after a week of training designed to test the service's ability to respond to nation-wide threats to its installations, units, personnel and families. The exercise, known as Solid Curtain-Citadel Shield (SC-CS) 2012, was led by Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces (USFF) and Commander, Navy Installations Command (CNIC)."Our intent was to accurately simulate real-world conditions, and to assess how our forces operate in that environment," said Adm. John C. Harvey Jr., commander of USFF.

APL and law enforcement officials including the FBI successfully tested anti-terrorism capabilities at the shipping line’s Seattle, Washington marine terminal. It was the seventh full-scale security exercise conducted by the global container carrier in the past six years. The day-long drill involved 200 people with representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard, Customs and Border Protection, port police and fire department. All helped evaluate APL’s collaboration with the public sector in combating threats to the supply chain. APL invited competing terminal operators as observers. “The cooperation we received from law enforcement was outstanding and the exercise was useful in showing us what works and what needs to be improved on…

The U.S. Coast Guard and 50 other federal, state and private organizations will conduct the triennial Spill of National Significance Exercise or SONS 2010 from March 22-25 in the northeast region of the U.S. SONS 2010 is a full-scale exercise designed to test response to a Spill of National Significance. A SONS is a spill that due to its severity, size, location, complexity or impact requires extraordinary coordination of federal, state, local, and responsible party resources to contain and clean up. As the lead federal agency for pollution incidents in coastal zones, the Coast Guard conducts this type of exercise every three years. Since 1994, exercises have taken place in Pennsylvania., Alaska, Texas, California, and the Midwest.

Harbor residents of and will see increased law enforcement activity this Wednesday and Thursday as area emergency responders participate in a 2-day U.S. Coast Guard lead counterterrorism exercise. The exercise is designed to test the Area Maritime Security Plan that was mandated by the Maritime Security Transportation Act of 2002 (MTSA). The exercise will take place in both the Ports of Los Angeles and and include simulated bombings that law enforcement and fire agencies will respond to in real-time. The U.S. Coast Guard, FBI, Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department…

Boatracs, the premier provider of wireless maritime information solutions, recently participated in a maritime security exercise co-sponsored by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Regional Maritime Security Coalition (RMSC), Oregon Emergency Management (OEM), and the states of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Conducted at the OEM Center in Salem, Oregon, in November 2003, the security exercise was designed to test maritime communication systems and track cargo movement along the Columbia and Snake River systems as a means of preventing potential security threats to US transportation networks. Boatracs provided a wireless maritime information system to demonstrate security readiness.

The commander of Maritime Defense Zone Pacific will conduct a multi-agency, multi-national port security exercise titled Seahawk 02 in the Pacific Northwest beginning Monday. Participants in the exercise will include more than 1,000 active and reserve U.S. military personnel from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard Personnel from the Canadian Defense Forces and Republic of Korea Navy, as well as representatives from numerous federal, state and local emergency response and law enforcement agencies, will also participate. Designed to test operational and command and control doctrine, as well as to provide a training opportunity for participants, Seahawk 02 will take place in two phases.

The U.S. Coast Guard is establishing temporary safety and security zones around waterfront areas in New London, Connecticut during the third Top Officials (TOPOFF3) homeland security exercise. The zones will be in effect from April 2 through April 10. 70 Fed. Reg. 15585 (HK Law)

The Transportation Security Administration and the U.S. Coast Guard will facilitate a port security exercise today in Wilmington, N.C. to evaluate preparedness, prevention and the ability to respond to and recover from a terrorist-related incident. The Port Security Training Exercises Program (PortSTEP) is focused on building links within the Area Maritime Security (AMS) Committee. The committee assists the captain of the port in writing, reviewing and updating an AMS plan in addition to supporting other transportation entities that depend upon the port being secure. The exercise will involve the entire port community, including both public governmental agencies and private industry.

The Transportation Security Administration and the U.S. Coast Guard will facilitate a port security exercise today in Wilmington, N.C. to evaluate preparedness, prevention and the ability to respond to and recover from a terrorist-related incident. The Port Security Training Exercises Program (PortSTEP) is focused on building links within the Area Maritime Security (AMS) Committee. The committee assists the captain of the port in writing, reviewing and updating an AMS plan in addition to supporting other transportation entities that depend upon the port being secure. The exercise will involve the entire port community, including both public governmental agencies and private industry.