Royal Australian Navy live fire exercise (SINKEX) at RIMPAC 2020
Channel: Royal Australian Navy
Date: 2020-09-01

Anzac Class frigate, HMAS Stuart, successfully fired two harpoon missiles and coordinated the missile firings of three other ships during one of RIMPAC’s best-known serials called the SINKEX, where participants sink a decommissioned warship.

Two of the Navy’s Fleet Air Arm MH-60R Romeo helicopters embarked in HMA Ships Hobart and Arunta also fired Hellfire missiles during the training serial on 29 August.

HMA Ships Hobart, Stuart, Arunta and Sirius, which have been part of the Regional Presence Deployment through Southeast Asia and the Pacific, will take part in Exercise Rim of the Pacific 2020 (RIMPAC).

In light of COVID-19 concerns, RIMPAC will be an at-sea-only event, developed to ensure the safety of all participating military forces.

This will be the first RIMPAC an RAN Hobart-class guided missile destroyers has taken part in.

Ten nations, 22 surface ships, one submarine, multiple aircraft, and approximately 5,300 personnel will participate.

This year’s exercise includes forces from Australia, Brunei, Canada, France, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, and the United States.