Pakistan, German, U.S. Naval Forces Conduct Passing Exercise in Arabian Sea

By Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Askia Collins | September 07, 2021

ARABIAN SEA --

The Pakistan Navy frigate PNS Alamgir (F 260) and German Navy frigate FGS Bayern (F 217) participated in a passing exercise (PASSEX) with guided-missile cruiser USS Shiloh (CG 67) in the Arabian Sea, Sept. 6.

The exercise included advanced maneuvers and communication drills flexing the crews’ abilities to operate together in a dynamic environment, and test and refine combined command and control processes.

“Today’s multi-domain operations demonstrate the capacity of the international rules based system to advance a common vision ensuring peace and stability,” said Rear Adm. Will Pennington, commander, Carrier Strike Group 5/Task Force 50. “The United States greatly appreciates the opportunity to hone our ability to operate with our partners together at sea.”

The events conducted between the partner naval units included communications testing, maritime maneuvers, aircraft tracking exercises, and leadership exchanges between U.S. and Pakistan aboard Shiloh.

“Exercises like this cement our relationship,” said Rear Adm. Jawad Ahmed, Commander West, Pakistan Navy.

The group visiting Shiloh included Rear Adm. Ahmed, U.S. Consul General in Karachi Mark Stroh, and Rear Adm. Pennington, Commander, Carrier Strike Group 5/Task Force 50.

“I was proud to witness the naval exercise today that included our close partners Pakistan and Germany,” said U.S. Consul General Mark Stroh. “The United States and Pakistan have collaborated together for decades to promote a peaceful, stable, and prosperous South Asia.  Our enduring military-to-military ties, demonstrated by today’s successful naval exercise, strengthen our U.S.-Pakistan relationship and support our peoples’ prosperity and security.”

Exercises like this serve as a demonstration of the U.S. Navy’s continued commitment to strengthening coalition partnerships in the region.

"We were honored to participate in this exercise and host our Pakistan Navy counterparts aboard Shiloh," said Capt. Sharif Calfee, commanding officer, USS Shiloh. "This demonstration of successful naval operations is a testament to the cooperative nature of our three Navies. We achieve results by working together, learning from one another and sharing a common goal of promoting and defending maritime security."

USS Shiloh is part of the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group and is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of naval operations to ensure maritime stability and security in the Central Region, connecting the Mediterranean and the Pacific through the western Indian Ocean and three strategic choke points. In addition to Shiloh, and Ronald Reagan as the flagship, deployed strike group assets include staffs, ships and aircraft of Carrier Strike Group 5, Destroyer Squadron 15, guided-missile destroyer USS Halsey (DDG 97) and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5.