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Maj. Lee said his previous CARAT experience worked to his advantage in planning for this year’s training, which he said is an improved training package for all involved, including the addition of working with dogs to assist in booby trap detection. A collie named “Tuck” and a Labrador retriever named “Lady” from the Malaysian Army Combat Training Centre worked with the Rangers and Marines during WIRA EAGLE. “I was impressed by how they picked up the scent and sniffed out the booby traps,” said Marine Cpl. Ian McConnell.
Familiarization Flights The flight training event included time in the co-pilot seat for three Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) pilots and an overview of the U.S. Navy P-3C crew’s techniques and procedures. RMAF pilots also took part in P-3C missions during the at-sea phase of the exercise. RMAF Capt. Raj Saravana said he and his fellow pilots train regularly with crews from Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United Kingdom during exercises with those nations. While they have not worked with U.S. Navy air crews in the past, they have attended U.S. Air Force courses in the U.S. “CARAT will help with this,” Capt. Saravana said. “We want everybody to get the chance to participate in CARAT and to learn from each other.” The RMAF pilots are based at Subang Air Force Base and fly the Beech B200T Super King maritime patrol aircraft. Their mission is maritime surveillance, involving offshore oilrig inspection, detection of illegal fishing boats, anti-piracy, and anti-smuggling operations. The majority of their activities occur in the southern Philippine border area where weapons smuggling and illegal immigration activity occurs. Unlike their U.S. Navy counterparts who fly their P-3C aircraft on deployments, the RMAF crews rotate between locations and the aircraft remain at the same site. RMAF exposure to anti-submarine warfare – a primary mission of the U.S. Navy’s P-3C aircraft – is limited. Learning was reciprocal, according to U.S. Navy Lt. Erik Cyre, who said his P-3C crew picked up valuable information from their guests concerning fishing boat identification procedures. The RMAF pilots were interested in all aspects of the P-3C crew’s mission, especially the U.S. Navy’s ship identification procedures. While RMAF identification procedures are based on U.S. procedures, the pilots wanted to see how the U.S. Navy does it. According to Lt. Cyre, “They were also interested in how the crew interacts, how we employ our sensors, and some of our tactics. They are trying to expand their maritime patrol capabilities and want to know about what types of information our sensors give us.” Summarizing the value of one shared training event that was true of the entire exercise, he said “events such as the familiarization flights “give us the opportunity to share tactics and procedures with the flight crews of other countries.” Lt. Cyre also observed, “Getting familiar with each other’s technique adds to the overall effectiveness should we ever . . . do some operations together.”
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