
The NOTAM below, issued for LIRR (Roma ACC), is one of a series which testifies the presence in the Mediterranean Sea of the USS Enterprise. The “Big E” will be conducting blue waters ops between SE Sicily and the Tyrrheanian Sea until Feb. 4. However, since civil war and anarchy seem to be a concrete risk as thousands Egyptians are clashing with police forces defying the curfew to protest against President Mubarak to express a demand for more democracy and the improvement of living standards, it is quite probable that Enterprise Strike Group will be ready to relocate rather quickly off the coasts of Egypt, to take part to the eventual evacuation of the US Embassy (currently defended by the Egyptian Army) or of American citizens unable to leave the country, should the need arise.
W0268/11 (Issued for LIRR PART 1 OF 2) – NAV WARNING.
CARRIER FLIGHT OPERATIONS WILL BE CONDUCTED IN
ROMA FIR/UIR (NORTH OF 363000N) IN INTL WATERS WI 150NM RADIUS OF
354000N0154500E (LMMM FIR/UIR) /MEDITERRANEAN SEA-SE SICILY ISLAND/
RMK: 1. ACFT WILL OPERATE UNDER THE PROVISION OF DUE REGARD
FOR THE SAFETY OF OTHER AIR AND SFC TFC IN THE VICINITY
OF THE FLEET. ALL FLIGHTS WILL COMPLY WITH APPLICABLE
ICAO PROCEDURES FOR FLT IN INTL AIRSPACE. ACFT WILL
OPERATE IN VMC OR WI RADAR SURVEILLANCE AND RDO COM OF
A SFC OR AIRBORNE RADAR FACILITY. THESE CONDITIONS
PROVIDE A LEVEL OF SAFETY EQUIVALENT TO THAT NORMALLY
GIVEN BY ICAO AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL AGENCIES AND FULFILL
UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT OBLIGATIONS UNDER ARTICLE 3
OF THE CHICAGO CONVENTION OF 1944 WHICH STIPULATES
THERE MUST BE ‘DUE REGARD’ FOR THE SAFETY OF NAVIGATION
OF CIVIL ACFT WHEN FLT IS NOT BEING CONDUCTED UNDER
ICAO FLIGHT PROCEDURES. ESSENTIALLY, FLT UNDER THE
‘DUE REGARD’ OR ‘OPERATIONAL’ OPTION OBLIGATES THE
END PART 1 OF 2. 04 FEB 07:00 2011 UNTIL 04 FEB 23:59 2011.
CREATED: 28 JAN 21:25 2011
W0267/11 (Issued for LIRR PART 2 OF 2) –
OF THE CHICAGO CONVENTION OF 1944 WHICH STIPULATES
THERE MUST BE ‘DUE REGARD’ FOR THE SAFETY OF NAVIGATION
OF CIVIL ACFT WHEN FLT IS NOT BEING CONDUCTED UNDER
ICAO FLIGHT PROCEDURES. ESSENTIALLY, FLT UNDER THE
‘DUE REGARD’ OR ‘OPERATIONAL’ OPTION OBLIGATES THE
MILITARY ACFT COMMANDER TO BE HIS OWN AIR TRAFFIC
CONTROL AGENCY AND TO SEPARATE HIS ACFT FROM OTHER
AIR TRAFFIC.
2. AS FOR ALL ABOVE, GAT (GEN AIR TFC) IS REMINDED THAT
THE ITALIAN ATC WILL PROVIDE SER AS FAR AS PRACTICAL
IN CONNECTION WITH U.S STATED MILITARY ACTIVITY. SFC – FL240)
END PART 2 OF 2, 03 FEB 07:00 2011 UNTIL 03 FEB 23:59 2011.
CREATED: 28 JAN 21:18 2011
I took the following picture of USS Enterprise when I visited the aircraft carrier in 1999 at Leghorn.
Hi David
To add up to your post, the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier left my hometown of Lisbon, Portugal, this morning. She was here together with the cruiser USS Leyte Gulf since January 26. She’s on her way to the Mediterranean as we speak.
Best regards,
Carlos
Hi Carlos,
thank you very much indeed for the info.
Did you have a chance to take some pics of the carrier?
BR
David
David,
How do you find this info?
A public site:
https://www.notams.jcs.mil/
BR
David
It is not safe for the crews of these ships for you to put out info of where they are and where they are going.
Don’t you think that if the US DoD has decided to make them available to anyone through the Internet there’s no need to worry about it?
seems to me this info should be classified
This info, is a NOTAM (Notice To Airmen) and it is issued to let all the air traffic (civilian and GAT) that an aircraft carrier is conducting flight ops in a certain region. So it can’t be classified as the purpose of a NOTAM is to let it know. Anyway, you can send the US DoD your complaints.
Do you know what carriers Cavour and Garibaldi are doing? The Italian FM Franco Frattini is reported as saying of Egypt “sta evocando una situazione da collasso dello Stato che noi abbiamo l’interesse ad evitare assolutamente.”
I don’t know if this means Italy will increase naval vigilance, but with Tunisia and Egypt both in turmoil it might well be prudent.
The only thing I know is that Cavour was at La Spezia on Jan. 28 (according to the Marina Militare website).
Dealing with the Italian FM statement, it can be translated as follows: “brings to mind a collapse of the State that we have an interest in avoiding absolutely”. For far there are no signs of increased naval vigilance.