Courtesy Photo | Canadian warship HMCS Charlottetown conducted a boarding of a vessel in the northern...... read more read more
National Defence Canada
During the first operational patrol of HMCS Charlottetown as part of Operation ALTAIR in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea, Lieutenant(N) Jake French was stationed with the Pakistani-led Combined Task Force 150 (CTF 150) headquarters as the ship's liaison officer in Manama, Bahrain.
His task was to assist Charlottetown with the transition from the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group to the tactical control and employment of CTF 150. The commanding officer of Charlottetown, Commander Patrick St-Denis, gave clear instructions: "Integrate Charlottetown into CTF 150 and facilitate leadership opportunities in the coalition."
CTF 150 is one of the maritime task forces assigned to the Coalition Maritime Forces Component Commander in Central Command's area of responsibility. It is under the command of Commodore Khan Hasham bin Saddique, Pakistani Navy, which is composed of approximately 25 Pakistani Navy personnel.
Canada's contribution was unique— no other ship in the coalition had representation. "I found my time in Bahrain to be extremely informative, both operationally and culturally," said French. "The Pakistani staff was welcoming and professional, and in very little time I adjusted to the battle rhythm of the naval base in Bahrain."
Charlottetown was soon made Pulse Group Commander for a focused operation in the Red Sea in company with USS Carney and RFA Argus, creating a maritime coalition presence during the Hajj pilgrimage.
One of the main objectives of the liaison officer was to give the ship an early heads-up on plans being discussed within the Coalition Maritime Forces meetings, as well as CTF 150 briefs, and identify the key areas of interest for the ship's future operations. After the first patrol, the command team from Charlottetown met with CTF 150 staff and the commodore to discuss future operations in the 150 AOR. "
No other ship in the AOR has kept as high an op tempo or been so proactive in all of its efforts as Charlottetown," commented Cmdre Hasham.
French has now turned over his duties to Lieutenant(N) Martin Fluet and is back onboard Charlottetown. "I am grateful for the opportunity to have helped the ship in the integration process, and to have been involved in the multi-navy coalition in Bahrain on an operational and tactical planning level," said French. "One of the highlights of working at CTF 150 was the rare opportunity to work and learn from members of the Pakistani Navy."
| Date Taken: | 02.06.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 02.09.2008 08:01 |
| Story ID: | 16184 |
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| Web Views: | 172 |
| Downloads: | 142 |
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