Vice Admiral Dele Ezeoba
From: Diana-Okon Effiong
Calabar The Nigerian Navy ship, NNS Thunder (f90) departed the Calabar Port Aug. 8 enroute Australia to participate in the Royal Australian Navy’s International Fleet Review (IFR).
The Chief Naval staff Vice Adm. Dele Ezeoba, charged the 177-member crew including 37 officers and 140 Ratings, to be of good behaviour in Australia.
According to Ezeoba, represented at the occasion by Rear-Adm. Joe Aikhomu, the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Naval Command, the crew will participate in the exercise slated for Oct. 3 to Oct.11 in Sydney, Australia.
He said that the crew will spend about four to five months before returning to Nigeria, adding that the welfare of crew members was paramount to the Federal Government and the naval hierarchy in Nigeria.
“This is a diplomatic exercise. The benefit is quite enormous. This mission is not an accidental thing.
“ The Federal government and the Nigerian Navy planned for following an invitation by the Australian government.
“A lot of things have been put in place right from the welfare of the crew, training, logistics so that the go there and represent this country well.
“There are things that we expect from our sailors. We expect them torespect the laws in the host country. We have participated in similar exercise in the past so it is not a new thing to us,’’ he said.
Ezeoba said the Nigerian Navy participated in similar exercise in 2005 when NNS Aradu visited the United Kingdom for the bicentenary (200 years) of the Battle of Trafalgar. He also said that in 2007 the NNS Nwanba visited Brazil for a similar exercise.
The Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) THUNDER will participate in the Royal Australian Navy’s International Fleet Review (IFR) slated for 3 – 11 October 2013 in Sydney, Australia.
Our correspondent learnt that the NNS THUNDER will return to home port December 2013.after making outbound port calls at Luanda, Cape Town, Port Louis, Freemantle and Sydney.
On the in-bound leg the naval ship will also visit Melbourne, Albany, Port Des Galet, Durban, Walvis Bay and Pointe Noire. The Fleet Review will start Oct. 4, 2013. The formal review of the participating ships will take place in Sydney Harbour on Oct. 5, 2013.
Other activities include a march through the streets of Sydney, sporting fixtures, cultural event and exercise Triton Centenary (TC13) which will be conducted in two phases before and after completion of the Fleet Review.
The warship, NNS Thunder f90, formerly called UCG Chase, was given by the United States Coast Guard to the Nigerian Navy. NNS Thunder (which means Aradu in Hausa) is said to be of the same mould with NNS Aradu, Nigerian navy flagship.
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