Royal Malaysian Navy Conducts Small Scale War Exercise

KD Selangor of the RMN (Source: news.com.au)

Kota Kinabalu: Media practitioners had a taste of how it feels like to be on a navy ship during a small-scale war exercise dubbed "Borneo War", held recently in conjunction with the Royal Malaysian Navy's 81st Anniversary.

The close to 12-hour exercise, which departed from the Sepanggar Naval Base sailing within 40 nautical miles off the coast at about 5.30am, involved a total of 402 navy officers and personnel, six vessels including KD Selangor and KD Perak, two helicopters – one from the Air Force and another from the navy – as well as a combat jet which acted as the enemy.

Also involved in the exercise were personnel from PASKAL who showed their abseiling skills from a helicopter hovering close to the vessel while doing a special ship boarding mission.

State Navy Commander Rear Admiral Datuk Mohammad Rosland Omar, during a media conference later, said the exercise showed good coordination and cooperation between the navy and air force.

Also present were KD Selangor Commanding Officer Commander M. Saravanan Muthusamy and KD Perak Commanding Officer Commander Noor Azizi Abdullah.

"This exercise shows that the navy has a high level of preparedness to push back any possible threat to the nation. We are ready to confront any threat and defend our waters when needed," he said.

He said the exercise was also part of efforts to further strengthen the existing cooperation with other enforcement agencies.

Meanwhile, visitors will also have the opportunity to get on board the vessels, which will be docked and open for visits at the Sepanggar Naval Base from April 25 to April 26 during a Navy Open Day held in conjunction with the Navy's 81st anniversary. Various exhibition booths will also be featured in the two-day event, which is expected to be officiated by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman. (Daily Express)