Aquino gets tour of US carrier which buried bin Laden at sea

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino led senior members of his Cabinet on a visit yesterday to the USS Carl Vinson, from where Osama bin Laden’s body was buried at sea.

A statement from the US embassy said the Carl Vinson and three other ships in the carrier group (USS Shiloh, USS Bunker Hill and USS Gridley) are embarking on a four-day routine port call and goodwill visit to Manila starting today until Thursday.

Embassy spokeswoman Rebecca Thompson said Aquino, US Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr. and other Philippine officials were flown early yesterday on a US military aircraft to the carrier.

It is still in international waters approaching the Philippines. It is coming from the North Arabian Sea, where it had received US SEAL teams who carried bin Laden’s body after killing the al-Qaeda leader in a raid on his home in Pakistan.

The visit will highlight the strong historic, community and military connections between the US and the Philippines.

“We are so honored that President Aquino was able to visit the carrier today,” Thomas said.

“The crew was just thrilled to be able to meet him and the other distinguished visitors who joined us.”

While in Manila, the men and women of the USS Carl Vinson carrier group will participate in a series of events with Philippine service members, including sporting events, seminars, and community assistance projects.

Meantime, AFP spokesman Commodore Jose Miguel Rodriquez said the port call of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier will not only highlight the strong defense relations of the two countries but is most likely to become a tourist attraction.

Largest patrol ship

Commanding officer Capt. Bruce Lindseyt discusses flight operations with President Aquino on board the USS Carl Vinson yesterday.

In Washington, Philippine Ambassador Jose Cuisia took delivery on Friday of a Hamilton-class Weather High Endurance Cutter from the US Coast Guard which will likely be deployed off the disputed Spratly islands chain (Kalayan islands).

The vessel, acquired through the Foreign Military Sales program of the US government, will be renamed BRP Gregorio del Pilar and sail under the command of Capt. Alberto Cruz, the Philippine embassy in Washington said in a statement.

It will be the largest patrol ship in the Philippine Navy and will boost its ability to patrol the country’s exclusive economic zone.

The ship can carry helicopters, extending its patrolling capabilities in the South China Sea.

Hamilton-class ships are 378 feet long, displace 3,250 tons, have dual diesel and gas turbine engines that give them a top speed of 29 knots and can remain at sea without refueling for 45 days.

They have a crew of 167 officers and men and a range of 14,000 miles.

Hamilton-class ships are generally armed with a rapid-firing 3-inch/76mm gun, a 20mm Phalanx and two 25mm Mk38 “Bushmaster” auto-cannons.

In remarks during the transfer ceremony of the vessel in Alameda, California, Cuisia said the handover was an indication of the robust Phl-US partnership and serves as an expression of America’s commitment to help the Philippines protect its maritime domain.

Manila recently lodged a diplomatic protest with Beijing after two Chinese patrol boats harassed a Philippine oceanographic ship at Reed Bank near the Spratly Islands claimed among others by China, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Capt. Cruz and 20 other officers and men have been training with the US Coast Guard in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean over the past few weeks as part of the turn-over of the vessel. – Pia Lee-Brago, Jaime Laude, Jose Katigbak (STAR Washington Bureau)