Bangladesh Navy takes flight from US ship
Dhaka, March 04 (bdnews24.com)—Standing on a small ship BNS Titas, an enthusiastic Petty Officer Abdur Rahman was seen telling his fellow sailors on possible benefits of USS Ingraham's presence.
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This training will enable our navy pilots to learn how to fly helicopters from ships and land on the same," he told bdnews24.com when asked how Bangladesh Navy would be benefited from the Ingraham's training.
It was not only Rahman but also other curious sailors on the Titas and the BNS Isa Khan looked at the US Navy ship, anchored hardly ten feet away from the two ships near Kutubdia in Chittagong.
They watched the US Navy pilots teaching their Bangladesh counterparts how to take off and land helicopters from the war ship.
The Navy officers were equally excited about the arrival of the USS Ingraham, which came to Bangladesh on Feb 28 to impart training to their Bangladesh counterparts.
No Bangladesh Navy personnel has ever had training of such type.
"Bangladesh Navy pilots are yet to learn how to fly helicopters from ships and land on the same," Commander Ziaul Hoque told bdnews24.com Monday on the Ingraham.
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We, for the first time, are getting training of such nature. This is not an easy task from technical points of view," said Hoque, who was one of the officers to challenge Myanmar's efforts to set up rigs in the disputed waters in the Bay of Bengal in Nov 2008.
The US navy trained 12 junior officers about how to operate surveillance helicopters from and on war ships. They left Bangladesh waters Thursday.
The commander said the Ingraham also held joint-exercise with BNS Bangabandhu and BNS Karnaphuli before leaving Bangladesh waters.
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Our frigate BNS Bangabandhu has the facility to host helicopter sorties. But we have no helicopter to be operated from the ships.
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This training will benefit us very much as we will have one helicopter in December and another by June next year," said Hoque.
Navy's commander of Chittagong commodore Nizamuddin Ahmed praised the training too.
"This free training from the US is a beginning of a new chapter in Bangladesh Navy's operation," Ahmed told bdnews24.com while witnessing the training on the Ingraham.
"We must have helicopter surveillance to guard our huge resources in the Bay of Bengal," he said.
The Ingraham's commander Adam J Welter termed the training an "opportunity" to work with the Bangladesh Navy.
Anchoring in difficult conditions in the Bay was a challenge, Welter told bdnews24.com.
"This is one of the places having strong currents. It will help us too to enhance professionalism," he said.
Under an agreement between the two countries, the US often sends its ships to Bangladesh for training and urgent rescue operations. Another US warship conducted Operation Sea Angel in Bangladesh following a catastrophic cyclone in 1991.
In 2007, USS Kearserg visited Bangladesh after cyclone Sidr hit the southern coastline.
Another US ship also visited Bangladesh in February this year to train Navy personnel on rescue and salvage operations.
'STRONGER NAVY NEEDED'
Commander Nizamuddin Ahmed said Bangladesh needed a strong Navy not for going to war but to protect its economic interests.
"Helicopter operation from the ships is the best way of guarding our maritime borders," captain Akhter Habib, chief executive officer of the BNS Isa Khan, told bdnews24.com.
"So, this training will really enrich our Navy officials who will utilise their training in future," he said.
Bangladesh has maritime disputes with its two neighbours—Myanmar and India.
In November 2008, South Korean industrial giant Daewoo, backed by Myanmar vessels, started piling rigs in the Bangladesh waters for oil and gas extraction.
The following month, Indian survey vessels entered into Bangladesh territory.
The two incidents created tensions in the Bay of Bengal. The issue was resolved through diplomatic means.
The incidents exposed the poor capabilities of the Bangladesh Navy, which was widely reported by the media.
Bangladesh Navy takes flight from US ship | Bangladesh | bdnews24.com
....you know, UncleSam would be more then happy to catch fresh bengali macchlis....
