Guided-missile frigate USS Thach hosted Ecuadorian navy officers for a tour while pierside in Manta, Ecuador, on 1 August, as part of Southern Seas 2011.
Guided-missile frigate USS Thach hosted Ecuadorian navy officers for a tour while pierside in Manta, Ecuador, on 1 August, as part of Southern Seas 2011.
Eight officers met with Thach leadership and walked through spaces around the ship. The tour took the Ecuadorian officers through the ship’s main engine spaces, mess deck, berthing, damage control and supply store rooms. The group also viewed the exterior of the ship and was briefed on the ship’s various communications arrays and weapons systems.
“In the Ecuadorian navy, we are working on improving and upgrading the command and control systems and the communications systems,” said Ecuadorian navy Lt. Cmdr. Carlos Lopez. “The goal of this tour was to see how the U.S. Navy’s systems compare to ours and to get an idea of how these systems can work for us.”
“This class of frigate was designed as a multi-functional and multi-mission ship,” said Lopez. “I found it very interesting how the U.S. Navy installs various equipment in one ship to do many different operations.”
“This tour provided an opportunity for the Ecuadorian navy officers to view the frigate’s capabilities and equipment,” said Cmdr. Jeff Scudder, Thach’s commanding officer. “The Ecuadorians are looking for ways to work with the Navy and interoperate with our systems for counter-illicit trafficking, anti-surface warfare, maritime security and surface surveillance.”
Thach arrived in Manta for a brief stop for fuel and supplies during their deployment for Southern Seas 2011. Southern Seas is a six-month deployment culminating with the multi-national exercise PANAMAX in mid-August.