Small boat crewmembers from the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Kimball (WMSL 756) and a Japan Coast Guard helicopter crew conduct a search-and-rescue exercise in Kagoshima Bay, Japan.
Kimball’s crew are in Kagoshima to conduct joint training and professional exchanges with members of the Japan Coast Guard expanding on a memorandum of cooperation signed in 2022 between the two sea services which established Operation SAPPHIRE, a perpetual operation to strengthen relationships, increase bilateral engagements, and focus on maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific.
U.S. Coast Guard video by Chief Petty Officer Matt Masaschi February 14, 2023
