‘Will cherish every moment spent with Indian Navy’: USS Somerset
VISAKHAPATNAM: Describing it as a great experience, the crew of USS Somerset, which took part in the Tiger Triumph joint exercise with the Indian Navy, said they will always cherish the moments they have collected during their visit to Visakhapatnam. The crew was speaking with the media on Saturday giving insights about the US vessel docked at Vizag port.
The modern ship, which is one of the three San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ships, was named specifically for Somerset County Pennsylvania, in honour of the passengers who died on United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked during the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. Every deck of the ship contains mementos of Flight 93, including a dedicated passageway leading to the Memorial Room, which bears the names of the passengers.
“The ship has a capacity to carry over 1,000 sailors besides carrying dozens of military vehicles, aircraft and helicopters. The ship also has a workshop to repair boats,” said Ashley Ambuehl, a pilot on the ship.
Expressing delight, Brnjic, Surface Warfare Officer on the Somerset said that they had loved every second they had spent here in Visakhapatnam with the Indian Navy and had learned a lot from them.
Tiger Triumph, which stands for Tri-Services India-U.S. Amphibious Exercise, is a combined joint exercise between the US and Indian armed forces focused on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief readiness and enhancing interoperability, and is being held from March 18 to 31, including harbour phase and sea phase.
