NOAC Embarks Team with USS Fitzgerald for Bilateral SHAREM Exercise with Japan

by Petty Officer 3rd Class Caitlin Coyle

06 February 2022 (UNDISCLOSED LOCATION) -- PHILIPPINE SEA –The Naval Oceanographic Anti-Submarine Warfare Center (NOAC) embarked a team of Aerographer’s Mates to lend expertise onboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) as it participated in a bilateral training exercises, Ship Anti-Submarine Warfare Readiness Effectiveness Measuring (SHAREM) program, with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) from Jan. 26–31.
“This is a great opportunity to improve our proficiency in the detection and tracking of submarines and enhances our ability to operate alongside our allies in the JMSDF,” said Cmdr. David Catterall, the commanding officer of Fitzgerald. “These events build on cooperation, and ensure that when we work together we are a stronger combined force that is ready to confront the undersea threat.”
NOAC sent a team of Aerographer’s Mates to enhance the anti-submarine capabilities of Fitzgerald. NOAC provided environmental forecasts for the ship to support the exercise as well as oceanographic analysis pulled from model data for sensors on this ship. These insights increased Fitzgerald’s ability to analyze properties that help predict how sonar will propagate through the water.
“Working with the Japanese increases our interoperability,” said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Wesley Bell, the officer-in-charge of the NOAC team. “Working with each other’s sensors, ships and crews, shows the broader scope of our capabilities when we’re working together. It shows our friendship, our cohesiveness and our ability to work with one another’s militaries.”
The five-personnel team had diverse responsibilities during the exercise including sharing technical and tactical knowledge with Sonar Technicians and other combat information center watch standers to ensure a successful training exercise with our Japanese allies.
“We share a lot of things tactically and operationally about how weather impacts anti-submarine warfare,” said Aerographer’s Mate 1st Class Jason Kelly, the forecast duty officer on the team. “The work we do out here is really important.”
Fitzgerald is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability with alliances and partnerships while serving as a ready-response force in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region.