Since 9th February around the coast of Sattahip, Thailand, the Royal Thai Navy and Army has been involved in an annual major military training exercise “Cobra Gold”, involving a number of countries in Asia .
Seven countries participated in this year’s multinational drill, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and the USA. This is the 35th occasion of the exercise and involved nearly 9,000 personnel from all 7 countries, plus officers from 21 nations operating in reduced roles with 9 others as observers in the Cobra Gold exercise.
The exercises ended on 19th February with a closing party aboard the Japanese battleship JS Musuyaki docked at the Navy Base at Sattahip, Thailand with top dignitaries from all nations involved in the Cobra Gold exercises attending.
In past years Japan has only been involved as an observer nation, and this is the first time that the country has been involved in direct training with other nations in Cobra Gold.
Ages Aviation Center, Inc. provided service and support to the Japanese Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) who sent their troops to attend the annual exercise. Ages Aviation Center, Inc. headquarters became the stopping point for refueling because of our “quick turnaround” capability. Together with Agility Japan, Ages provided seamless service much to the appreciation of JASDF.