Naval Exercise for Israel - USA – Greece

31/3/2014 Ami Rojkes Dombe & Or Heller - israeldefense.com

In the drill, named "Noble Dina 2014", various types of missions will be exercised, including search and rescue missions, sea maneuvering, anti-submarine warfare (ASW), coordinated command-and-control missions

Israeli, Greek and US military personnel met in Crete last week to kick off "Noble Dina 2014", a two-week, trilateral exercise in the Mediterranean Sea.This is the fourth annual exercise conducted by the three countries, and will involve hundreds of military personnel deployed on advanced surface ships, air assets and submarines, according to a report on DefenseNews website.

In addition to search and rescue, sea maneuvering, anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and coordinated command-and- control missions, which have been practiced in previous years, Noble Dina 2014 will feature undersea divers and other specialists deployed for joint port protection. The Israel Navy’s Snapir Unit, a relatively new and highly specialized force trained for persistent surface and underwater port security, will support the newest element of the drill scheduled for later this week at a Cretan port.

“This is something new that reflects common, critically important operational requirements,” said Rear Adm. Yaron Levi, chief of staff of the Israel Navy. “It’s a long, complex and extremely substantive exercise aimed at enhancing the already significant coordination and interoperability among the three navies,” Levi said. Levy insisted that despite widespread perceptions, Noble Dina is not a replacement for Reliant Mermaid, a trilateral exercise that Israel had conducted for 10 years with the US and Turkey. The Israeli ORBAT includes a Dolphin-class submarine, a Sa’ar-5 Corvette-class ship, two Sa’ar 4.5 missile boats and ASW capabilities in addition to the Snapir Unit.

Or Heller reports that until the year 2009 the navies of Israel and the United States have conducted exercises with the Turkish Navy, but the cooperation between Israel and Turkey was suspended in the wake of the Mavi Marmara incident. "Since the incident, Israel has intensified its security relations with Greece and Cyprus, which are considered rivals of Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean," Heller reported. "The Navy emphasized that while the exercise with Turkey was in the form of a search and rescue exercise, the exercise with Greece and the United States simulates marine combat within a coalition."