The Southern Seas 2024 deployment of the U.S. Navy’s USS George Washington was not only used by navies from the South American continent to exercise with the aircraft carrier, but also by other U.S. armed services for joint activities in the Pacific Ocean. This is evidenced by the recent presence on the ship’s flight deck of one of the U.S. Army’s CH-47F Chinook heavy transport helicopters.
Currently, the USS George Washington is transiting waters of various Latin American countries along with its escort group, consisting of the USS Porter and the logistical and replenishment ship USNS John Lenthall, en route to San Diego. This transit is part of its journey to relieve the USS Ronald Reagan in Japan soon. Throughout its voyage, U.S. Navy units have been conducting various PASSEX-type exercises with the naval forces of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, and most recently, Colombia, which dispatched one of its patrol vessels participating in Operation GALAPEX 2024.
Additionally, to enhance joint operations in the U.S. Southern Command area of operations with other branches of the U.S. armed forces, the aircraft carrier hosted a visit from a CH-47F Chinook helicopter operating within Joint Task Force-Bravo (JTF-Bravo), an advanced element of the U.S. Armed Forces based at Soto Cano Air Base in Honduras.
As evidenced by photographs released on June 28, a CH-47F from the 1-228 Aviation Regiment operated alongside the USS George Washington to conduct a series of qualification flights, including landings and takeoffs, and flight deck operations.
Specifically, this helicopter belongs to the 1st Battalion of the 228th Aviation Regiment of the U.S. Army, also known as the Winged Warriors. Deployed to conduct advanced operations within the U.S. Southern Command, this aviation unit aims to execute missions such as counter-narcotics, CTTOC (counter- terrorism and transnational organized crime), HA/DR (humanitarian assistance/disaster relief), DLO (deck landing operations), NEO (non-combatant evacuation operations), air movements to austere and remote locations, CASEVAC (casualty evacuation), and SAR (search and rescue), in complex terrains, maritime environments, and disaster-affected areas.
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