Mesa Verde Hosts Panamax Media Day

Photo By Chief Petty Officer Patrick Grieco | Brig. Gen. John J. Donnelly, deputy commander, 807th Medical Deployable Support Command, is officially welcomed aboard by rainbow side boys of the amphibious dock transport ship USS Mesa Verde during his recent visit as part of Fuerzas Aliadas PANAMAX 2009. FA PANAMAX 2009 is a multinational exercise with 20 participating countries tailored to the defense of the Panama Canal, involving over 4,500 personnel from the U.S. Southern Command area of focus.  

USCENTCOM, AT SEA

09.16.2009

Courtesy Story

U.S. Navy           

CARIBBEAN SEA - Two dozen members of the Panamanian and international media toured USS Mesa Verde on Sept. 15 as part of Fuerzas Aliadas PANAMAX 2009.

The three-hour media tour coincided with commencing the engagement portion of the exercise, intended to train multinational military and civil to defend the Panama Canal.

"This is a chance to get the story out about the exercise and explain to the public what the objectives are," said Cmdr. Larry LeGree, the Mesa Verde's commanding officer. "This is so people ashore will understand why we're doing this exercise and the significance of this to the region."

FA PANAMAX 2009 is one of the largest multinational training exercises in the world and is taking place in the waters off the coasts of Panama from Sept. 11-22 with the participation of civil and military forces.

More than 20 vessels and a dozen aircraft are involved in the exercises. Participants are focusing on a variety of responses to any request from the government of Panama to protect and guarantee safe passage of traffic through the Panama Canal, ensure its neutrality, and respect national sovereignty. Simulated ground forces are also participating at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas.

Before the media toured the ship, members of Commander Destroyer Squadron 40 staff and Mesa Verde gave a brief about the history of the exercise, which began in 2003, and how it has expanded from three participating nations to 20.

"PANAMAX is a chance for different nations and navies to come together at an operational military level to insure a common interest we all have, which is maintaining the Panama Canal as an international transit for trade" said LeGree. "This is something that all of our economies depend on."

Some of the Latin-American partner nation representatives aboard were able to interact directly with Spanish-speaking members of the media. Bilingual Mesa Verde Sailors translated as tour guides explained some of the functions of the ship.

"As an interpreter for the foreign media, I felt I was making a big contribution to the ship," said Storekeeper Seaman Francisco Muniz-Perez of Mesa Verde's supply department. "They wanted to know how we operate, what the ship's main purpose is, as well as how many personnel operate the ship. This was an opportunity for me to stand out amongst my peers and help the ship get its story out to the Spanish-speaking public."

Mesa Verde Sailors said they were proud to help the Navy tell its story to an international audience.

"It's a pleasure to invite our multinational partners along with their media outlets aboard the ship to share the dynamic and multifaceted capabilities of Mesa Verde and her Sailors," said Ens. Kevin Powers, Mesa Verde's food service officer. "It gives us an opportunity to show how proficient we are as a ship, a crew and a Navy."

• Date Taken: 09.16.2009
• Date Posted: 09.16.2009 13:17
• Story ID: 38853
• Location: USCENTCOM, AT SEA