A U.S. Navy ship served as a coaching platform for helicopter pilots from the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, Feb. 22-24.
Emirati pilots carried out deck touchdown {qualifications} aboard U.S. Navy expeditionary sea base USS Lewis B. Puller (ESB 3) because the ship operated within the Arabian Gulf, enhancing interoperability amongst regional maritime companions.
“The pilots and aircrew built-in seamlessly with the deck crew of Lewis B. Puller,” stated Capt. Jon Bradford, commanding officer of Lewis B. Puller. “It was a fantastic expertise for my staff and we look ahead to working with our Emirati companions sooner or later.”
The deck touchdown {qualifications} helped 25 Emirati army pilots preserve proficiency in touchdown on the flight deck of a ship at sea.
Through the three-day coaching alternative, UH-60M Black Hawk, Bell 407, AS332 Tremendous Puma, and AH-64D Apache helicopters carried out 158 landings. Emirati personnel additionally practiced repelling from a fast-rope on Lewis B. Puller’s flight deck.
Lewis B. Puller is forward-deployed to U.S. fifth Fleet and is able to supporting all kinds of missions together with counter-piracy, maritime safety, catastrophe reduction and disaster response operations.
The U.S. fifth Fleet working space contains 21 international locations, the Arabian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, Pink Sea, components of the Indian Ocean and three vital choke factors on the Strait of Hormuz, Bab al-Mandeb and Suez Canal.
