A Philippine Navy band welcomes the frigate USS Reuben James (FFG 57) at Subic Bay for bilateral exercises in CARAT 2000.

"This year’s exercise is intended to ensure that our forces are prepared to work together to meet real-world challenges," said Ambassador Hecklinger. "CARAT brings together naval units representing all of the capabilities in our arsenal needed to conduct Navy and Marine operations."

Starting in early July, U.S. Navy frigates, amphibious ships, a salvage unit, a submarine, SEALS, Seabees, and members of the U.S. Coast Guard and Army joined their Thai counterparts in a wide variety of training events. The exercises took place at a number of locations in and around Sattahip, including the Chuk Samet Port, Royal Thai Marine Corps Base at Sameasan, Hat Yao, Hut Khlot and Koh Yoh.

Philippine Marine SSgt. Clark Vilanuez shows a freshly caught fish to U.S. Marines attending a Philippine Marine jungle survival course in CARAT 2000.

CARAT 2000 in Thailand marked the second time the U.S. Navy’s newest mine hunting technology — SWATH MHS-1 — was tested in Southeast Asian waters. It stands for Small-Waterplane-Area-Twin-Hull, Mine Hunter System 1. It is the only one of its kind and it can be deployed in less than three days. Its crew of four to eight believes it to be one of the best small ships ever built.

"Our job is to seek out an object and mark it," says Lt. Bryon Kibildis, the ship’s officer in charge. The crew accomplishes this by using such equipment as the Klein 5500 Multi-beam Side Scan Sonar and the deep ocean Phantom HD 2+2 ROV. The Klein SS Sonar consists of a 5-beam side scan sonar that has a 100-meter range. With it, the crew can track six objects at the same time.

Although the system cannot actually detonate the mines it seeks, it does contain a transducer capable of scanning on both sides and forward of 150 meters. When it detects a mine, it marks the spot where the mine has been detected. Surface or underwater mine countermeasure units will detonate the mine. The advantage of the SWATH is that it is a fast response vehicle and can be deployed anywhere in the world, by air or sealift.

Another technological asset employed in CARAT was Mobile Inshore Undersea Warfare (MIUW) Unit 104. MIUW units provide ships and submarines with a rapidly deployable force capable of surveillance operations and intelligence collection. Said Lt. Cmdr. Dave Lausch, MIUW Unit 104 Executive Officer, "In naval coastal warfare, we’re the seeing eyes of the surface and subsurface navy." During CARAT, the unit accomplished its mission of protecting the Navy’s ships and subs from the coastline.

The Royal Thai Navy’s 102 Squadron and U.S. Navy Patrol Squadron Four (VP-4) conducted a bilateral aerial mining exercise. The exercise was flown from Utapao and included P-3C Orion aircraft flown by VP-4 and P-3A Orion aircraft flown by Squadron 102.

The two squadrons conducted aircrew and maintenance symposiums, exchanging information and ideas on aircraft maintenance practices, ordnance loading and tactical employment of the P-3 aircraft. Members of each nation’s crews went up together in combined surface surveillance and anti-surface warfare flights. During these mining flights, three Thai Navy personnel flew with the U.S. Navy P-3C crew, and three U.S. Navy personnel flew on the Royal Thai Navy P-3A aircraft.

One future U.S. naval officer had a unique opportunity to learn directly from the Royal Thai Navy. Midshipman 1/C Matthew J. Lambert trained aboard the Thai frigate Phutthaloetla Napalai. Through the summer’s exercise, he worked with Thai sailors, sharing fire-fighting techniques. "This phase of CARAT has been the most beneficial thus far," he maintained. Although the crew spoke Thai, most directions on board were written in English, which helped him as the only American on board the Thai frigate.