‘Ready for anything’: US aircraft carrier crew training for war with Russia but aims to deter threats
The crew of a giant US aircraft carrier in European waters says they are ready to fight Russia if the call comes but their mission is to deter threats and prevent escalation.
The USS George H W Bush is helping to test NATO’s ability to defend itself – a mission that became all the more real in the wake of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
In the past few days, F18 jets have flown from the carrier in southern Europe all the way out to Lithuania and Poland on the alliance’s eastern edge, close to Russia, operating alongside warplanes from other allied nations and with NATO warships and ground troops.
The commander of the carrier strike group told Sky News his message to Russia is that his men and women “are ready for any mission”.
“We want peace – it’s what everybody wants,” Rear Admiral Dennis Velez said, speaking inside a hangar on board the ship, which holds more than 70 jets, helicopters and other aircraft.
“We want the war [in Ukraine] to be over and to bring stability back to the region and have a peaceful and stable Europe – but, for us, we are ready.”
Asked if that meant he was ready for war if necessary, the admiral said: “This ship, this strike group, our allies: we are ready for anything. We demonstrate that every day.”
At least two Russian warships have been watching the action, which forms part of a series of NATO activities, from a safe distance, as have Russian aircraft.
“We have seen them,” said Rear Admiral Velez, speaking on Tuesday as the strike group of the aircraft carrier and escort ships sailed through the Adriatic Sea, off the coast of Italy.
As to what was said to the Russians, he answered: “Nothing… They have the same right as we do to operate in international waters, so we just follow international law and the rules of the road.”
The vicinity of Russia’s military and the knowledge that Russian forces are locked in a brutal war with Ukraine – which is not part of NATO but shares borders with members of the alliance – means operating in Europe is no longer just another peacetime training exercise for the more than 5,000-strong crew of US sailors on the carrier.
“It is a real change,” said Lieutenant Cordan Mackenzie, 27, one of the F18 pilots on board. Her call sign is ‘Big Poppa’.
“Most of the time what we are doing, it feels like training, it feels like a game but you come out here and have intel [intelligence] briefings and you fly missions with NATO allies and it really solidifies how real the things that we do in the world are and how important our mission set is: having a presence here in the Adriatic and having the US work with our NATO allies to make sure the world knows we are still a power to be reckoned with.”
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‘Dirty bomb’ claims ‘not unfounded’
She, and her fellow aviators, face the possibility of one day being ordered to fight in air-to-air combat against the Russians should tensions escalate significantly.
It is a type of operation that US, British and other Western pilots did not have to contemplate during the long war in Afghanistan when they were not pitted against a rival air force.
“It is daunting,” said Lieutenant Mackenzie.
“It is one of the things that you just have to rely on your training. Without a doubt, I think US-trained navy pilots are the best in the world… All we do out here is train and get ready for a fight that might come and I think when it comes, pilot to pilot, I hope we are the better man in the box.”
The carrier is taking part in a relatively new NATO series of activities called Neptune, which – unlike longer-planned, more predictable, annual exercises – allows allies to be faster, more flexible and more dynamic with how they test their maritime, air and land capabilities.
This is designed to improve their ability to deter Russia – a task that allies have focused on even more intensely following Vladimir Putin’s all-out invasion of Ukraine on 24 February.
“We have stepped up our readiness, our preparedness and strengthened the way we work together across the alliance to prevent and defend every inch of NATO territory,” Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary general of NATO, told Sky News on a visit to the carrier.
For example, he said this was also only the third time since the end of the Cold War that a US aircraft carrier group has come under NATO command, with all three of those occasions happening as part of Neptune drills in the past year.
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‘Dirty bomb’ claims ‘not unfounded’
The NATO chief also voiced new concern about Ukraine after Russia falsely alleged the Ukrainians were planning to use a radioactive “dirty bomb” on their own territory. The claim could be part of a “false flag” plot by Moscow to launch such an attack and blame Kyiv.
Read more:
What is a ‘dirty bomb’ and is Russia planning to blow up the Nova Kakhovka dam?
“Russia has accused others of things they intend to do themselves, so we need to monitor closely what Russia now does. And they must know that use of a dirty bomb or a radiological bomb is a serious escalation,” Mr Stoltenberg said.
Asked how NATO would respond to such an attack, he said: “It will be a very serious escalation.”
Allies are also concerned that Vladimir Putin could even resort to a nuclear strike as his forces suffer defeats at the hands of Ukraine’s military, backed by Western weapons.
The head of NATO said: “The likelihood of any use of a nuclear weapon in Ukraine remains low, at the same time the consequences are so devastating, so enormous it is a risk we have to take seriously.”
US
Boy, 8, and girl, 10, killed in US Catholic school shooting named – as father brands attacker ‘a coward’
The families of two children killed in the US Catholic school shooting have said their “hearts are broken” and branded the attacker a “coward”.
Fletcher Merkel who was eight and 10-year-old Harper Moyski were killed during mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
Eighteen other people were injured, including children aged between six and 15 and three adults in their 80s.
Police said Robin Westman, a male born as Robert Westman, opened fire with a rifle through the windows of the school’s church as children sat in pews.
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New details released of US school shooting
‘Our hearts are broken’
Harper’s parents, Michael Moyski and Jackie Flavin, remembered her as “a bright, joyful, and deeply loved 10-year-old whose laughter, kindness, and spirit touched everyone who knew her”.
“Our hearts are broken not only as parents, but also for Harper’s sister, who adored her big sister and is grieving an unimaginable loss. As a family, we are shattered, and words cannot capture the depth of our pain,” their statement said.
They urged leaders and communities to “take meaningful steps to address gun violence and the mental health crisis in this country.”
“Change is possible, and it is necessary – so that Harper’s story does not become yet another in a long line of tragedies,” the statement added.
The family of Fletcher Merkel said there was a ‘hole in our hearts’. Pic: Family handout/AP
‘Fletcher loved his family’
In a statement reported by Sky’s US partner network NBC News, Fletcher’s father Jesse Merkel blamed the “coward” killer for why the boy’s family can’t “hold him, talk to him, play with him, and watch him grow into the wonderful young man he was on the path to becoming”.
He said: “Fletcher loved his family, friends, fishing, cooking, and any sports that he was allowed to play.
“While the hole in our hearts and lives will never be filled, I hope that in time, our family can find healing.”
Mr Merkel also praised “the swift and heroic actions of children and adults alike from inside the church”.
“Without these people and their selfless actions, this could have been a tragedy of many magnitudes more. For these people, I am thankful,” he added.
Families and loved ones reunite at the scene after the shooting. Pic: Reuters
Mayor calls for assault weapon ban
It comes after Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey called for a statewide and federal ban on assault weapons, a day after the deadly school shooting.
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Minneapolis mayor urges assault weapons ban
“Thoughts and prayers are not going to cut it. It’s on all of us to see this through,” the mayor said at a news conference. “We need a statewide and a federal ban on assault weapons.
“We need a statewide and a federal ban on high-capacity magazines. There is no reason that someone should be able to reel off 30 shots before they even have to reload.
“We’re not talking about your father’s hunting rifle gear. We’re talking about guns that are built to pierce armour and kill people.”
Meanwhile, Minneapolis police chief Brian O’Hara gave an update on the investigation, saying the suspect had fired 116 rifle rounds into the church.
“It is very clear that this shooter had the intention to terrorise those innocent children,” he added, before saying the killer “fantasised” about the plans of other mass shooting attackers and wanted to “obtain notoriety”.
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Thomas Klemond, interim CEO of Minneapolis’s main trauma hospital Hennepin Healthcare, said at an earlier news conference that the hospital was treating nine patients injured in the shooting.
One child at the hospital was in a critical condition, he added.
Children’s Minnesota Hospital also said that three children remain in its care as of Thursday morning.
Police have released new details about the killer in the US Catholic school shooting – including that they “idolised” mass murderers and they wanted to “watch children suffer”.
Two children, aged eight and 10, were killed during mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
The victims have been named as Fletcher Merkel, 8, and Harper Moyski, 10, – click here to read more
Eighteen other people were injured, including children aged between six and 15 and three adults in their 80s.
Police said Robin Westman, a male born as Robert Westman, opened fire with a rifle through the windows of the school’s church as children sat in pews.
Robin Westman
Almost 120 rifle rounds fired, police chief says
In a news conference on Thursday, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the attacker fired 116 rifle rounds into the church.
“It is very clear that this shooter had the intention to terrorise those innocent children,” he added.
The police chief said the killer “fantasised” about the plans of other mass shooting attackers and wanted to “obtain notoriety”.
When asked about the attacker obtaining the firearms used legally, Mr O’Hara said that they did not have a criminal history or any diagnosed mental health disorders.
While they had potentially concerning social media posts, the police chief added that there was no evidence to suggest that Westman was legally barred from purchasing a firearm.
People mourn outside the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis. Pic: Reuters
Suspect ‘wanted to watch children suffer’
Joe Thompson, acting US attorney for Minnesota, also said evidence recovered of the killer’s plans showed “pure indiscriminate hate” and that they “idolised some of the most notorious school shooters and mass murderers in our country’s history”.
“I won’t dignify the shooter’s words by repeating them,” Mr Thompson added. “They are horrific and vile, but in short, the shooter wanted to watch children suffer.”
Earlier, the mayor of Minneapolis called for a statewide and federal ban on assault weapons after the deadly attack, saying “thoughts and prayers are not going to cut it”.
“There is no reason that someone should be able to reel off 30 shots before they even have to reload,” Jacob Frey said.
“We’re not talking about your father’s hunting rifle gear. We’re talking about guns that are built to pierce armour and kill people.”
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Minneapolis mayor urges assault weapons ban
Thomas Klemond, interim CEO of Minneapolis’s main trauma hospital Hennepin Healthcare, said at a news conference that the hospital was treating nine patients injured in the shooting.
One child at the hospital was in a critical condition, he added.
Children’s Minnesota Hospital also said that three children remain in its care as of Thursday morning.
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In a post on Facebook, the hospital said “there are no words to describe the overwhelming pain many are feeling”, adding: “We feel that pain with you.
“To the entire Annunciation community, you have our deepest condolences. During this time of unimaginable grief and loss, we want you to know that we at Children’s Minnesota are with you.
“We will always be here to care for you. And in this moment, we hurt alongside you.”
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