Aboard US Carrier, Cambodian Brass Survey South China Sea

 Aboard US Carrier, Cambodian Brass Survey South China Sea

 

ABOARD THE USS RONALD REAGAN— Amid the baking surface heat of a vast oceanic expanse, crewmembers of the USS Ronald Reagan go about their business as fighter jets burst from the deck of the enormous aircraft carrier. Despite the routine activities, today is historic: 10 Cambodian diplomats, including senior officials from the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and the Ministry of Interior, have come aboard to study real-time naval operations as the vessel plies disputed waters of the South China Sea. During the rare visit, Cambodians even received hands-on experience commanding take-off and landing, ordering jets on practice missions. “We are conducting normal operations for a carrier strike group — freedom of navigation, operating in the vicinity of worldwide commerce," said Captain Michael “Buzz” Donnelly, the vessel's commanding officer, who describes their location as roughly halfway

 between the internationally contested Spratly and Paracel Islands. "Lots of ships have been going through this area, from Australia to Malacca. It is an area that we’re frequently operating in and [conducting] exercises with our friends, allies, and neighbors, to demonstrate our commitment to the freedom of the sea and the freedom of commerce.” Today is an opportunity "for the Cambodian military and government officials to come out and see exactly what it is for an aircraft carrier to operate on the high seas," he says. "For us to have that exchange ... is nothing but beneficial to our relationship.” Cambodian Interior

 Minister Prum Sokha echoed the sentiment, calling the visit vital to maintaining "peace in the region and in the world.” “What’s important is that joint cooperation requires us to understand one another," Sokha said. "So the visit is a way to do so; not only do we explore the high technology, but also the spectrum of the operation from a joint [perspective].” Commissioned in 2001, the nuclear-powered USS Ronald

 Reagan, some 330 meters long and 76 meters wide, replaced the USS George Washington to join to 7th Fleet based out of Yokosuka, Japan, in January 2014. According to Captain Donnelly, the ship carries a crew of more than 5,000, including engineers, doctors, pilots and naval officers, along with some 70 fighter jets, including F-18s, and helicopters and radar planes.