Operation Atalanta warships met with their Chinese counterparts in the Indian Ocean to conduct joint training on February 27.
Main focus of the training were air operations with the ships’ embarked helicopters.
The Chinese ships, tanker CNS Taihu and frigate CNS Daquing, also conducted a joint replenishment at sea with Atalanta warships ESPS Tornado and FGS Erfurt. The ships then practiced formation manoeuvring and joint escorting.
Coordinated and supervised by Chinese liaison officers on board the Atalanta ships, CNS Taihu conducted joint replenishment with ESPS Tornado on one side and FGS Erfurt on the other.
This was the first ever replenishment at sea (RAS) operation with a warship from the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) for the Spanish offshore patrol vessel Tornado.
The exercises helped to further develop the cooperation and interoperability between Atalanta ships and other nations’ naval forces.