Cutlass Express 2012 Kicks Off

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (NNS) — Sailors and civilian maritime professionals from eight nations officially kicked-off exercise Cutlass Express 2012-2 (CE12-2) during pre-sail conferences in Djibouti, Djibouti; Port Louis, Mauritius; and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Nov. 1.

This year’s weeklong exercise, being conducted for the second time since its inception last year, is part of the larger ‘Express’ series of exercises and is designed to advance East African maritime relationships while addressing mutual security issues.

“Exercise Cutlass Express is aimed at enhancing capacity to fight piracy in our area,” said Maj. Gen. Farrah Mohammed, chief of operations and Training, Tanzanian People’s Defence Force, during the opening remarks in Dar es Salaam. “This work is commendable and is an important endeavor towards combating piracy, illicit trafficking and illegal fishing.”

Pre-sail training events for CE12 will be held in-port in Djibouti, Mauritius, and Tanzania while the at-sea training will be simultaneously conducted in the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden. The exercise is scheduled to conclude Nov. 8.

During the in-port portion of training, combined maritime forces will conduct pier-side workshops focusing on maritime interdiction operations (MIO) including vessel boarding drills. Exercise participants will also practice first aid procedures and conduct communications drills.

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Article courtesy of America’s Navy.

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