Training of non-US personnel in Guam continues apace

Guam is of importance in training military personnel in more ways than one, sharing expertise in a variety of ways.

In an April 9 joint statement (CHamoru Standard Time), U.S. Secretary of State for Defense Lloyd J. Austin III, Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defense, and UK Secretary of Defense Grant Shapps confirmed the presence in Guam of Royal Australian Navy sailors.

As the Journal reported in December, the training is ahead of the establishment of Submarine Rotational Force-West in Australia “as early as 2027” and will offer the Australians hands-on training on nuclear powered submarines on-island.

According to the statement, 37 Royal Australian Navy sailors “reported to the USS Emory S. Land in Guam in late January 2024, to begin training and to gain the necessary skills and qualifications.”

The sailors are not alone.

“Australian industry personnel will also be involved in supporting this activity to continue to grow the submarine sustainment workforce and supply chain. U.K. Royal Navy officers will observe the activity to enable integration of U.K. maintenance requirements for future U.K. SSN [nuclear-powered submarine] port visits and future U.K. rotational presence as part of SRF-West,” the statement said.

The Emory Land has a hybrid crew of about 450 U.S. Navy and Military Sealift Command personnel, and has been homeported in Guam since December 2015, according to Journal files. The USS Frank Cable submarine tender is also homeported in Guam.

USS Emory S. Land, photo by U.S. Navy MC1 Jason Behnke

Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States are making significant progress in “trilateral submarine cooperation,” and their respective submarine industrial bases, the statement said.

Australia's selected ASC Pty. Ltd. (formerly the Australian Submarine Corp. and an Australian government enterprise) and BAE Systems (a British defense, security, and aerospace company) to build its nuclear-powered submarines, and selected ASC as “Australia's nuclear-powered submarine sustainment partner.”

In March, 20 Australian industry personnel also completed a three-month placement at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility.

The three nations align under the acronym AUKUS.

According to Journal files, the Republic of Singapore Air Force began deploying airmen and aircraft to Andersen Air Force Base in May 2021. Andersen is also set to receive half of Singapore’s F-15 fleet, or about 12 planes, with accompanying infrastructure to be built and the detachment formally established by 2029. mbj

Palau moves into implementation phase on long-awaited hospital relocation

KOROR, Palau — More than three decades after it was built, Palau’s only hospital is firmly on a path toward replacement. President Surangel S. Whipps Jr. convened the first meeting of the Belau National Hospital Relocation Steering Committee on May 14, marking the start of what officials are calling the implementation phase of a project that many say is long overdue.

Training of non-US personnel in Guam continues apace