On December 26, 2008, the first batch of escort fleets of the Chinese Navy set sail from a military port in Sanya and went to the Gulf of Aden and the waters of Somalia to perform escort missions, starting a new journey for the Chinese Navy towards the deep blue. Over the past 15 years, the Chinese Navy has continuously dispatched 45 formations, more than 150 ships, and more than 35,000 officers and soldiers, completed more than 1,600 escort missions, rescued and protected nearly 100 ships of various types, and continued to maintain the absolute safety of the protected ships. , demonstrated the Chinese military’s responsibility as a major power with practical actions, and won widespread praise at home and abroad.
On December 17, local time, the 45th batch of Chinese Navy escort taskforces safely escorted the Marshall Islands-registered chemical tanker “Opera” to the scheduled rescue point, completing the 1,604th batch of Chinese Navy escort missions. Captain Vaibhav Singh expressed his gratitude to the officers and soldiers of the formation through VHF.
Captain of the “Opera”: On the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the Chinese Navy’s escort in the Gulf of Aden, this is a great moment, and I want to congratulate you. At the same time, we are also very happy to join the Chinese naval fleet sailing through the Gulf of Aden. At the same time, the Chinese navy is doing a great job in this area. Thank you for your cooperation. We feel very safe with you here.
Over the past 15 years, the Chinese naval escort fleet has actively implemented global security initiatives and the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind and a community with a shared future for the oceans. It has escorted more than 7,200 Chinese and foreign ships, of which more than 50% are foreign ships, and has provided support for the World Food Program 12 times. We will escort ships transporting humanitarian supplies. Groups of escort formations have persisted in escorting, fighting and training in the distant seas. More than 150 ships and more than 35,000 officers and soldiers have withstood actual combat tests in the distant seas, and their ability to deal with various security threats has been comprehensively improved.
Liang Dong of the 45th Navy Escort Task Force: From accompanying escorts, regional escorts, to special forces escorting ships, the escort officers and soldiers constantly summarize and improve the escort operation style, ensuring that every escort operation is successful and smooth, and every escorted ship is 100% Safety.
Over the past 15 years, the Chinese naval escort fleet has successively carried out non-war military operations such as escorting Syrian chemical weapons, providing emergency water supply to the Maldives, and searching and rescuing the missing Malaysia Airlines flight. It has successfully completed emergency tasks such as the evacuation of Libyan nationals, the evacuation of Yemeni nationals, and the evacuation of nationals from Sudan. Action has made important contributions to building a community with a shared future for mankind.
Naval military expert Zhang Junshe: The Chinese naval escort fleet has successfully completed the escort mission of more than 7,200 merchant ships, successfully rescued many merchant ships, and effectively maintained the safety of international maritime transportation channels. At the same time, the escort taskforce also completed many non-war military operations, including evacuation of overseas Chinese and humanitarian assistance, which effectively demonstrated China’s responsibility as a responsible major country. At the same time, it also gained widespread recognition and respect from the international community.
Breaking the waves and setting sail for the calmness of the sea
The Gulf of Aden is a sea area located near Yemen and Somalia. It belongs to the Arabian Sea and covers an area of approximately 53,000 square kilometers. Piracy was once rampant here. On December 26, 2008, the first batch of escort fleets of the Chinese Navy set sail from a military port in Sanya to perform escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and the waters of Somalia.
CCTV reporter Liu Guanqing: On December 26, 2008, the navy’s Haikou ship, Wuhan ship, and Weishanhu ship formed the first batch of escort formations of the Chinese Navy. They sailed more than 4,400 nautical miles and went to the Gulf of Aden to perform escort missions. On 124 During the day’s escort missions, they escorted a total of 41 batches of 212 Chinese and foreign ships, which also kicked off the Chinese navy’s escort missions in the far seas.
On January 6, 2009, the first batch of formations had just arrived in the mission sea area and escorted four merchant ships including the “Hanihe”, “Jinhe”, “Hebei Aoxiang” and “Guanyin”. At noon the next day, the formation encountered its first danger since the escort.
Wuhan Ship King Hongyao of the Navy: The mother ship of the pirate ship, with some fast rafts behind it, interspersed into the middle of our formation. At that time, what we were dealing with was that the helicopter took off and landed directly, hanging on the top of the mother ship, and the special operations team’s guns above were pointed at it. It had no choice but to retreat, and our formation sailed normally.
On January 29, 2009, the Wuhan ship received a signal for help. A Greek merchant ship was surrounded by 11 pirate boats. The situation was very critical.
Hong Yao, the Wuhan Ship King of the Navy: Our helicopter was ready to take off in 3 minutes, and we took the special operations team to the merchant ship asking for help. When he got there, he saw 11 boats surrounding him. It was useless to drive them away. At that time, the special operations team opened fire directly and the pirates left. This was the first time we encountered real pirates attacking a merchant ship and we went to the rescue.
Facing unfamiliar waters and unfamiliar tasks, the escort officers and soldiers battled wits and courage with pirates amidst the dangers and raced against time to rescue the ship in distress. At 11 a.m. on November 20, 2010, COSCO’s “Taiankou” ship was boarded by pirates and attacked, and 21 crew members sent out a distress signal.
Feng Jianqun, then deputy captain of the “Taiankou” ship: When the pirates rushed this way, I could see the bullets with my own eyes. The bullets came diagonally from the port side and swished into the sea water.
After receiving the rescue order, the Xuzhou ship of the Chinese Navy’s seventh escort taskforce, which was performing escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and the waters of Somalia, rushed to the incident site 350 nautical miles away to prepare for a forceful rescue.
Yang Wei from a naval helicopter regiment: We arrived near “Taiankou” at about 4 o’clock in the morning the next day. Because it was still dark at that time, the observation was not very clear, and it was not known how long the pirates had been on the ship.
The officers and soldiers of the Xuzhou ship completed the deployment of various firepower points and preparations for main and secondary battery attacks. At the same time, the helicopter commando team and the two small boat commando teams were also ready for battle. At around 8 a.m. on the 21st, the special operations team received an action order, and two small boats carrying eight special forces members began to board the ship for rescue.
Li Wei from a certain brigade of the Marine Corps: What we saw included holes in the side windows made by rockets, including some blood stains. Then after entering the cab, it was a mess, and each cabin was severely damaged by pirates.
The special operations team divided into two groups to search the entire ship. After several hours of intense combat search, the special operations team determined that all the pirates who boarded the “Taiankou” ship had escaped, and all 21 crew members were rescued safely.
Feng Jianqun, then deputy captain of the “Taiankou” ship: When the door of the safety cabin opened and we saw the navy, we suddenly became excited. At this time, we felt that we had finally been rescued. We are very grateful to the navy officers and soldiers.
The successful rescue of the “Taiankou” ship made the naval officers and soldiers who witnessed the rescue operation realize the responsibility and responsibility on their shoulders. Wang Ke, who served as the translator for the 25th escort taskforce, still remembers the scene when he rescued the Tuvaluan cargo ship and successfully captured the pirates. On April 8, 2017, the 25th escort taskforce of the Chinese Navy received a notification that the Tuvaluan cargo ship OS35 was hijacked by pirates in the northwest waters of Socotra Island in the Gulf of Aden. The number of pirates was unknown. Upon receiving the order, the Yulin ship quickly turned and accelerated and was ordered to go to the rescue.
Wang Ke of the Navy Shenzhen Ship: When I boarded the OS35 in a small boat as the first batch of special forces members, there were a lot of burn marks on the entire rear deck and cabins. The fire had been extinguished, but the residual heat was still there, and some You have to be careful not to burn your hands when climbing. More than half of the cab window was broken, and there were many bullet holes in the door, which looked shocking.
Special operations team members launched a blanket search for the merchant ship. Since merchant ships have many cabins and transport a large amount of cargo, it has brought considerable challenges to the entire search process.
Navy Shenzhen Ship Wangke: The entire search process lasted 4 to 5 hours. During this period, we discovered three armed pirates in the life raft on the port side. Under our forceful deterrent, the pirates immediately surrendered.
After the rescue was successful, the 19 rescued crew members kept saying “Thank you China”. On the sparkling Gulf of Aden, the Chinese naval escort fleet has used practical actions to contribute China’s strength to safeguarding world peace.
Relay escort for that mountain-like promise
It has been 15 years since December 2008 when the Chinese navy went to the Gulf of Aden, thousands of miles away, to perform escort missions. Over the past 15 years, the mission of the Chinese naval escort fleet has been continuously expanded, from initially escorting Chinese ships to escorting ships of other countries. It has implemented the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind and a community with a shared future for the oceans with practical actions, demonstrating China’s role as a responsible major country. Take responsibility.
Not long ago, the 45th escort fleet that completed the 1,600th escort mission of the Chinese Navy received the protected merchant ship “Hailanzhi”.
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2023-12-25 13:52:00
