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The Thailand phase of CARAT, with 3,000 Thai and U.S. military personnel taking part, began 6 June with an opening ceremony at the Chuk Samet port facility in Sattahip, Thailand. With Thai and U.S. sailors and Marines standing in formation side by side, Vice Adm. Somjai Watanayothin, Chief of Staff of the Royal Thai Fleet, said, “The Navy has realized the importance of CARAT exercises since its beginning as a vital one that provides our men and women in the Navy with the chance to enhance knowledge, proficiency, and experience since CARAT encompasses several tactics and aspects of modern naval warfare.”

Thai Navy personnel on board USS Vincennes watch as U.S. sailors demonstrate restraints used by the U.S. Navy in visit, board, search and seizure operations.
Photo by GM1 Tim Gustafson, USN
“The importance of interoperability in today’s world only increases,” said U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Ravic Huso. That’s reason enough for the U.S. to remain committed to exercises like CARAT, despite heavy operational demands on naval forces in the Pacific. He noted, “The goals of this exercise are clear – to give our navies the opportunity to train together; to enhance our naval operational readiness; to prepare us to work together to meet real world maritime challenges; and to ensure regional stability and security.”

Exercise events included at-sea maneuvering and communications, naval gunnery, diving and salvage, explosive ordnance disposal, mine warfare, airborne maritime patrol, amphibious operations, and force protection. The exercise also incorporates community service projects that Chargé d’ Affaires Huso described as, “U.S. sailors and Marines will join their Thai counterparts in many projects to help local communities. They will build a general-purpose building at a local school and provide medical and dental care and medicines to those in need. This is an extremely important element of the exercise: it demonstrates the dedication of our militaries to community service.”

A four-ship task group with an embarked Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF), Landing Force CARAT, spearheaded U.S. participation. It included a P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft, the guided missile cruiser USS Vincennes (CG 49), the dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49), the guided missile frigate USS Curts (FFG 38), and the rescue and salvage ship USS Safeguard (ARS 50).

Seven Royal Thai Navy ships participated in CARAT. They were HTMS Prathong, HTMS Rattanakosin, HTMS Phuttayodfa Chulalok, HTMS Sukothai, HTMS Sichang, HTMS Similan, and HTMS Taksin.
The Thai Navy ship HTMS Prathong (background) and U.S. Navy ship USS Harpers Ferry conduct maneuvering drills.
Photo by JO3 Alicia T. Boatwright, USN
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