U.S., Norway and Spain to Train Warships Together

According to the Ventura County Star, Naval Base Ventura County threw a party Saturday for visiting warships from Norway, Spain and a newly built U.S. destroyer.

Over the next two weeks, the ships and their newly installed weapons systems will be put to the test during a series of at-sea exercises. This is the first time a Norwegian warship has docked at the Port of Hueneme, and the first combined Norwegian Navy, Spanish Navy and U.S. Navy Combat System Ship Qualification Trials. The crews of the Norwegian HNoMS Fridtjof Nansen, Spanish SPS Mendez Nunez and the USS Gridley will use the trials to train and operate the ships’ powerful cache of guided missiles and torpedoes.

The Norwegian warship is 400 feet long and has 120 crew members. Spain’s SPS Mendez Nunez is 481 feet long and has a crew of 229. The USS Gridley, the newest of the U.S. Navy’s guided-missile destroyers, is 510 feet long and has a crew of more than 365. Source: VenturaCountyStar