Combined Task Force 150 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Combined Task Force 150 is a multinational coalition naval task force

Task force

A task force is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology...

working under the 25 nation coalition of Combined Maritime Forces and is based in Bahrain

Bahrain

' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...

established to monitor, inspect, board, and stop suspect shipping to pursue the "War on Terrorism

War on Terrorism

The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...

" and in the Horn of Africa

Horn of Africa

The Horn of Africa is a peninsula in East Africa that juts hundreds of kilometers into the Arabian Sea and lies along the southern side of the Gulf of Aden. It is the easternmost projection of the African continent...

region (HOA) (includes operations in the North Arabia Sea

Arabian Sea

The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...

to support operations in the Indian Ocean

Indian Ocean

The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...

. These activities are referred to as Maritime Security Operations

Maritime Security Operations

Maritime Security Operations is a term for the actions of modern naval forces to "combat sea–based terrorism and other illegal activities, such as hijacking, piracy, and slavery, also known as human trafficking." Ships assigned to such operations may also assist seafaring vessels in distress...

(MSO).

Countries presently contributing to CTF-150 include Republic of Korea, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Denmark

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

, France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Other nations who have participated include Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

, Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

, Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

and Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

. The command of the task force rotates among the different participating navies, with commands usually lasting between four and six months. The task force usually comprises 14 or 15 ships. CTF-150 is coordinated with, and incorporates ships of, the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, under the Combined Forces Maritime Component Commander/Commander U.S. Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain

Bahrain

2002–2005

Before 11 September 2001, Task Force 150 was a U.S. Navy formation serving as part of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command

U.S. Naval Forces Central Command

United States Naval Forces Central Command is the United States Navy element of United States Central Command . Its area of responsibility includes the Red Sea, Gulf of Oman, Persian Gulf, and Arabian Sea...

. After 11 September, it became a patrol force in the Horn of Africa region. On 5 May 2002, command of the force was handed over from the United States to Germany. The German Defence Ministry announced in Berlin that day that the leadership of the Task Force, supported by five nations, was to be handed over from Captain Frothingham (U.S. Navy) to German Admiral Gottfried Hoch.

On 20 December 2002, a meeting was held aboard the USS Mount Whitney

USS Mount Whitney (LCC-20)

The USS Mount Whitney is a Blue Ridge class command ship of the US Navy; it is the flagship of the Sixth Fleet. She is also the command and control ship for the Commander Joint Command Lisbon and the Commander Striking Force NATO...

with military leaders from Djibouti regarding the Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa. At the time, CTF-150 was commanded by Spanish Rear Admiral

Rear Admiral

Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...

Juan Moreno, and comprised ships from France

France

, Spain

Spain

, Germany

Germany

, the United Kingdom

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

and United States

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

.

In January 2003, the task force held a Visit, Board, Search and Seizure (VBSS) exercise involving the following vessels:

Spain: SPS Navarra
SPS Navarra (F85)
SPS Navarra is the fifth of the six Spanish-built s, based on the American design, of the Spanish Navy.Laid down on April 15, 1991, and launched on October 23, 1992, Navarra was commissioned in service on May 27, 1994....

(flagship, frigate)
United States: USS Mount Whitney
USS Mount Whitney (LCC-20)
The USS Mount Whitney is a Blue Ridge class command ship of the US Navy; it is the flagship of the Sixth Fleet. She is also the command and control ship for the Commander Joint Command Lisbon and the Commander Striking Force NATO...

– (command ship)
Germany: Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (F218)
Brandenburg class frigate
The F123 Brandenburg class is a class of German frigate. They were ordered by the German Navy in June 1989, and then completed and commissioned between 1994 and 1996 to replace the Hamburg class destroyers...

(frigate), Rhön (A1443)
Rhön class tanker
The Type 704A Rhön class tankers are replenishment oiler used by the German Navy to provide underway replenishment for its ships at sea.-Ship list:Originally the ships were built for Libya as Okene and Okapi...

(tanker)

On 8 June 2005, CTF-150, under the command of Royal Navy Commodore Tony Rix, successfully conducted the boarding of the vessel Safari in international waters, leading to the seizure of 2.3 tons of hashish. The French D'Estienne d'Orves-class

D'Estienne d'Orves class

The A69 type Avisos are small warships mainly designed for coastal anti-submarine defence, but are also available for high sea escort missions . Built on a simple and robust design, they have an economical and reliable propulsion system which allows them to be used for overseas presence missions...

frigate Commandant Birot (F796) performed the boarding. The captured crew were transferred to the Arleigh Burke-class

Arleigh Burke class destroyer

The Arleigh Burke class of guided missile destroyers is the United States Navy's first class of destroyer built around the Aegis combat system and the SPY-1D multi-function phased array radar. The class is named for Admiral Arleigh "31-Knot" Burke, the most famous American destroyer officer of...

destroyer

Destroyer

In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...

USS O'Kane (DDG 77).

On 17 August 2005, French Vice Admiral

Vice Admiral

Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...

Jacques Mazars replaced British Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

Commodore Tony Rix as commander of CTF-150. At the time, it comprised ships of Republic of Korea, Italy

Italy

, France

France

, Germany

Germany

, Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

, Canada

Canada

, the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

and United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

Anti-piracy operations

See also: Piracy in Somalia
Piracy in Somalia
Piracy off the coast of Somalia has been a threat to international shipping since the second phase of the Somali Civil War in the early 21st century...

The CTF-150 has been engaged in anti-piracy operations in Somalia in parallel to other independent anti-piracy operations by countries such as China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

and Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

.

On 22 January 2006 USS Winston S. Churchill

USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81)

USS Winston S. Churchill is an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer of the United States Navy. She is the 31st destroyer of a planned 62-ship class. The Churchill is named after the...

captured a suspected pirate vessel in the Indian Ocean as part of an ongoing effort to help maintain law and order in the region.

In the action of 18 March 2006

Action of 18 March 2006

The Action of 18 March 2006 occurred when two United States naval vessels were attacked by pirates. The U.S. ships were part of Combined Task Force 150.-Background:...

, two United States Navy ships were attacked by Somali pirates during an opposed boarding. In the ensuing gun battle, all the pirates were either killed or captured.

On 4 April 2006, the South Korean fishing vessel MV Dong Won (628) reported it had come under rocket attack off the coast of Somalia. Immediately two ships from the task force, the Dutch frigate HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën (F802)

HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën (F802)

HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën is the first ship of the De Zeven Provinciën class air defence and command frigates in service with the Royal Netherlands Navy...

and the U.S. guided-missile destroyer USS Roosevelt (DDG-80)

USS Roosevelt (DDG-80)

USS Roosevelt is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in the United States Navy. The Roosevelt is the second Flight IIA ship and the last US Navy destroyer to carry the 5"/54 Mk. 45 mod 3 gun....

responded. However, the pirates had already hijacked the vessel and reached Somali territorial waters after threatening the captured crew members.

On 22 August 2006, Rear Adm. Iqbal was relieved by German Rear Admiral Heinrich Lange.

In December 2006, Lange passed control to British Royal Navy Commodore Bruce Williams.

In March 2007, the Dutch frigate Hr.Ms. Evertsen

HNLMS Evertsen (F805)

HNLMS Evertsen is the fourth De Zeven Provinciën class frigate of the Royal Netherlands Navy.Hr Ms Evertsen visited South Africa in late 2007 as part of a NATO task force on a friendship visit....

deployed to the waters of the Horn of Africa, as part of CTF-150, and in response to a request from the United Nations

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

World Food Programme

The World Food Programme is the food aid branch of the United Nations, and the world's largest humanitarian organization addressing hunger worldwide. WFP provides food, on average, to 90 million people per year, 58 million of whom are children...

, against piracy off the Somalian coast.

The CTF-150 established the Maritime Security Patrol Area

Maritime Security Patrol Area

The Maritime Security Patrol Area is specified patrol zone in the Gulf of Aden. Its borders are unmarked, but are a narrow, rectangular corridor between Somalia and Yemen, within the northern sector of the gulf...

on 22 August 2008, through a narrow corridor within the Gulf of Aden

Gulf of Aden

The Gulf of Aden is located in the Arabian Sea between Yemen, on the south coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and Somalia in the Horn of Africa. In the northwest, it connects with the Red Sea through the Bab-el-Mandeb strait, which is about 20 miles wide....

aimed at deterring attack and hijacking of ships seeking safe passage through the zone.

Also in August 2008, the Danish Command & Support Ship HDMS Absalon

HDMS Absalon (L16)

HDMS Absalon and her sister ship HDMS Esbern Snare are the biggest ships ever to serve in the Royal Danish Navy , and are the two members of the Absalon class flexible support ships...

deployed to join and lead CTF 150 for a 6 month tour. On 17 September 2008, the Danish ship captured 10 pirates in two small ships. The pirates were in possession of ladders and other implements with which to board ships, as well as rocket launchers, machine pistols, and grenades. After consulting with the Danish Ministry of Justice

Ministry of Justice of Denmark

Ministry of Justice of Denmark is the Danish government ministry responsible for the general judicial system, including the police and the prosecution service, the courts of law, and prisons and the probation service...

and other task force members, it was determined by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the pirates could only be prosecuted in Denmark, partly because the pirates would have faced the death penalty in the nearby states, and Danish law prohibits extraditing criminals when they might face the death penalty. Eventually, the pirates were freed, since the Danish authorities were concerned that it would be difficult to deport them back to Somalia once their sentences were served. The pirates were allowed to keep their ships, though not their weapons.

In December, 2008, Absalon was involved in the rescue of putative Somali pirates 90 miles off Yemen

Yemen

The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....

in the Gulf of Aden

Gulf of Aden

. The craft from Somalia

Somalia

Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...

was reported to hold rocket-propelled grenades and AK-47 assault rifles, and to have been adrift for several days. Also per the report, the Absalon took the sailors and weapons aboard, sank the craft, and turned the sailors over to the Yemen coast guard. The Absalon, according to The New York Times report, "was deployed in the Gulf of Aden [in] September ['08] as part of an international effort to curb piracy." part of Combined Task Force 150.

Interdiction

Throughout 2006, the Somali Civil War continued to escalate. During this time, the task force conducted normal operations in the Indian Ocean. By early 2007 it became actively involved in providing a maritime cordon to prevent the escape of members of Al Qaeda suspected of being embedded within the ranks of the Islamic Courts Union (ICU).

Open warfare

War in Somalia (2006–present)

The War in Somalia was an armed conflict involving largely Ethiopian and Somali Transitional Federal Government forces and Somali troops from Puntland versus the Somali Islamist umbrella group, the Islamic Court Union , and other affiliated militias for control of the country. There is a clear...

broke out between Ethiopian and the ICU forces on 20 December 2006, but until 2 January 2007 there had been no request by the Ethiopian or Somali military for CTF-150 to take action. On that day, the aim of the patrols shifted to "...stop SICC leaders or foreign militant supporters escaping"

On 4 January 2008 ships of the task force began performing Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure

Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure

Visit, board, search, and seizure is the term for maritime boarding actions and tactics, designed to capture enemy vessels, to combat terrorism, piracy and smuggling, and to conduct customs, safety and other inspections, as employed by modern navies, marine and maritime services, military and...

(VBSS) missions, boarding fishing boats (dhow
Dhow
Dhow is the generic name of a number of traditional sailing vessels with one or more masts with lateen sails used in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean region. Some historians believe the dhow was invented by Arabs but this is disputed by some others. Dhows typically weigh 300 to 500 tons, and have a...

s) and oil tankers passing near the Somali coast. US ships of Combined Task Force 150 include the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer

Arleigh Burke class destroyer

USS Ramage

USS Ramage (DDG-61)

USS Ramage is an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer of the United States Navy. The ship is named for Vice Admiral Lawson P...

and the Ticonderoga-class cruiser

Ticonderoga class cruiser

The Ticonderoga class of missile cruisers is a class of warships in the United States Navy, first ordered and authorized in FY 1978. The class uses phased-array radar and was originally planned as a class of destroyers...

USS Bunker Hill

USS Bunker Hill (CG-52)

USS Bunker Hill is a Ticonderoga class guided missile cruiser laid down by Litton-Ingalls Shipbuilding Corporation at Pascagoula, Mississippi on 11 January 1984, launched on 11 March 1985 and commissioned on 20 September 1986...

. Commodore Bruce Williams of the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

led the task force at this time.