Navy drills to be performed in bay


The U.S. Coast Guard is “strongly advising” boaters to sail with “extreme caution” as the U.S. Navy conducts exercises from Monday through Thursday in the East Passage.

The Naval Undersea Warfare Center will oversee drills in the torpedo range between Gould and Prudence islands, according to Petty Officer Joshua Herriott, Southeastern New England sector. There also will be tests in Newport’s Coddington Cove and between transit lanes of the separation scheme at the entrance to Narragansett Bay.

The testing will include unmanned vehicles capable of traversing the surface, air and sea, Herriott said. Although the waterways will remain open to commercial and recreational traffic, boaters should steer clear of vessels and aircraft that are participating in the exercises. They also should comply with specific requests to provide a wide berth. The orders may be relayed directly to vessels or through a general broadcast on VHF-16.

Dubbed the Advanced Naval Technology Exercise, this annual round of testing allows sailors to demonstrate the future capabilities of the Navy. The ATNX provides a low-risk environment for scientists and engineers to evaluate their technological innovations at the research and development levels before they become militarized.

This year’s testing, titled “Prepare for Battle: Undersea Security,” will focus on future concepts that explore and interact with the maritime domain, connecting assets from the seafloor to space.