Visited 14 Ports in 13 Countries
Midshipmen of the 78th class at the Korea Naval Academy are setting out for an ocean voyage training that will cover 14 ports in 13 countries over 141 days. The naval cruise training, which began in 1954, is an ocean voyage training designed to help 4th-year midshipmen preparing for commissioning adapt to life aboard ships.
According to the Navy on the 28th, the 2023 Naval Cruise Training Group (Commander: Brigadier General Cho Chung-ho) will depart from Jinhae naval port at 10:30 a.m. today. This year’s cruise training group consists of 151 midshipmen from the 78th class and about 500 personnel, accompanied by the training ship Hansando (ATH, 4,500 tons) and the logistics support ship Hwacheon (AOE-I, 4,200 tons).
Fourth-year students from the military science departments of Chungnam National University, Sejong University, and Hanyang University, which are partner universities for military exchange cooperation, as well as naval development advisory committee members and French naval academy midshipmen, will join for certain segments to observe the training. Midshipmen from Saudi Arabia and the Philippines will also have the opportunity to visit their home countries during the training period.
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the cruise training, and for the seventh time in history, the group will embark on a world tour. It is the first such voyage in four years since 2019, covering approximately 30,000 miles (55,600 km), which is about one and a half times around the globe. The countries to be visited include the United States (Hawaii), Colombia (Cartagena), the United States (Baltimore), Canada (Halifax), Germany (Hamburg), the United Kingdom (Portsmouth), France (Cherbourg), Spain (Barcelona), Egypt (Alexandria), Saudi Arabia (Jeddah), India (Chennai), Bangladesh (Chittagong), the Philippines (Manila), and Japan (Yokosuka), before returning to Jinhae on January 15 of next year.
The midshipmen will receive various training to develop the mission execution capabilities required of junior officers, including lifesaving, combat deployment, and tactical maneuvers. On the Hansando, training will include air defense operations, anti-submarine warfare, and ship handling practice, while the Hwacheon will provide specialized education such as mobile logistics, electronic warfare, and damage control command. Major Christopher Weiner, serving as an exchange professor in the English department at the Korea Naval Academy, will accompany the group as the first U.S. Navy officer to do so, providing instruction on joint operations, operational planning, and military English.
From 2020, the visit countries and training schedule were reduced for three years as a preventive measure against COVID-19, but this year, various military diplomacy programs, including personnel exchanges with host countries, have been prepared to broaden the midshipmen’s international perspectives.
The cruise training group plans to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Korean War armistice and the 70th anniversary of the Korea-U.S. alliance by visiting national cemeteries and monuments of participating countries, conducting visits and volunteer activities at local veterans’ facilities, hosting receptions aboard ships for veterans and their families, and holding a Korean War armistice commemorative photo exhibition on board. Additionally, the defense industry promotion exhibition hall, which was suspended due to COVID-19 since 2019, will be reestablished on the Hwacheon to actively support defense exports. Joint cultural performances to celebrate diplomatic relations with the countries visited, support for overseas Korean community independence movement commemorations, and promotion for the 2030 Busan Expo bid will also be conducted.
Commander Cho Chung-ho of the cruise training group stated, "In addition to achieving the primary goal of educating and training midshipmen, all personnel and midshipmen of the cruise training group will take pride in representing the Republic of Korea as both athletes and military diplomats, and through active exchange and cooperation activities with the countries visited, we will contribute to global security cooperation."
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