The Royal Thai Navy’s CVH-911 HTMS Chakri Naruebet helicopter carrier, FFG-472 HTMS Bhumibol Adulyadej guided missile frigate, and AOR-871 HTMS Similan replenishment ship were in formation sailing during Naval Exercise Fiscal Year 2023. On April 4, 2023, Admiral Adung Phan-iam, commander of the Royal Thai Navy, traveled to inspect the Royal Thai Navy training and give sermons to the troops participating in the training of the Navy for the year 2023.
HTMS Chakri Naruebet (911) is the flagship of the Royal Thai Navy (RTN), and Thailand’s first and only aircraft carrier, although the RTN refers to her as an “Offshore Patrol Helicopter Carrier”. Based on the Spanish Navy’s Príncipe de Asturias design and constructed by Spanish shipbuilder Bazán, Chakri Naruebet was ordered in 1992, laid down in 1994, launched in 1996, and commissioned into the RTN in 1997. The ship is the smallest functioning aircraft carrier in the world.
The Bhumibol Adulyadej-class frigate is a class of frigates operated by the Royal Thai Navy. The design is a variant of the Republic of Korea Navy’s Gwanggaeto the Great-class destroyer design, with additional stealth features. This is the first ship in the High-Performance Frigate Boat Project of the Royal Thai Navy. It is able to perform 3D combat operations on surface, underwater and air. The lead ship of the class, named HTMS Bhumibol Adulyadej, was constructed in South Korea.
The training focuses on the important things to prepare both the person, the object, the tactical readiness, and the physical and mental readiness of the troops so that the Navy is ready to support various situations appropriately. Although in the current state of Thailand, we may not have conflicts or have to use military force to fight and kill anyone, we must be prepared and ready to deal with rapidly changing situations. Therefore, in this condition, training is given a lot of importance, as the saying goes, “How to fight, train like that”.
