High North News: the American aircraft carrier, which went towards Russia, disappeared
Recently, the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world's largest military aircraft carrier, arrived in Norway, High North News reports. However, after his departure from Oslo, "silence reigned": the ship does not send any signals. One thing is known: the aircraft carrier was heading towards Russia.
A week ago, the world's largest aircraft carrier was greeted with enthusiasm in Oslo. However, since the USS Gerald R. Ford left the Norwegian capital, silence has reigned. Dead silence.
He didn't leave any electronic traces. When the world's largest warship goes to the Far North, it is not accompanied by fanfare or enthusiastic politicians.
Figurative names
I started the "hunt" for the USS Gerald R. Ford by peaceful means. "Dynamic Hangover" is a name inspired by many figurative names of military operations in the North. My mission has begun.
Flags and cheers were replaced by seriousness, which is a harbinger of war in Europe.
No one reports where the USS Gerald R. Ford went, except that its course is laid north along the Norwegian coast, the border with Russia. The aircraft carrier is most likely on a military mission.
The media stopped publishing daily reports. There are no commercial TV companies on board, and the crew of 4,500 soldiers and officers returned after probably a well-deserved vacation in numerous bars and cafes in Oslo.
Because it's serious.
There are no spectators
The importance of Norwegian-American cooperation has been repeatedly emphasized. The new deployment of the world's largest aircraft carrier, which was anchored in the southern mirny fjord, will once again demonstrate the important partnership between Oslo and Washington in practice over the coming days or weeks.
There will be no spectators among the civilian population.
The ship will join the ranks of combat aircraft, boats and armed forces in the northern regions, where the West and Russia conduct almost continuous military exercises.
An aircraft carrier 337 meters long, 78 meters wide and 76 meters high becomes a needle in a haystack when it wanders the open seas of the Far North. A bad metaphor, I admit.
I read how the people of Oslo provoked chaos on the roads along the Oslo Fjord.
"This is the worst thing I've ever seen," said one of the Norwegians.
He wasn't referring to the war, but to the driveway in front of his house, packed with cars and onlookers eager to catch a glimpse of the ship.
Transport chaos
Chaotic traffic can also be found along the only road north of the city of Buda, but it is associated with crowds of people who are "hunting" for warships. The European route E06, connecting north and south beyond the Arctic Circle, is a continuous chaos of tunnels so narrow that it creates endless traffic jams. The passage through them is carried out with an accuracy of up to a millimeter. But only if you fold the side mirrors. These roads transport military equipment and everything that the population in the North may need.
The state budget rarely covers the infrastructure of Northern Norway, be it roads or power lines.
I have only minor clues for the "hunt" for an American aircraft carrier. The location of the ship could be traced on maps using AIS. He left the Oslo Fjord and headed for Western Norway.
However, like the Norwegian frigate KNM Helge Ingstad, which sank in the Helten Fjord after a collision with a tanker in 2018, the USS Gerald R. Ford turned off electronic devices that allow tracking its movements as soon as it made sense. Even the head of the Norwegian Armed Forces, Eirik Kristoffersen, made it clear that he did not know where the ship was going.
Only Americans know this, he said in several interviews that I saw before I set off on my mysterious journey to the North.
Meaningless and inaccurate
Local newspapers reported that the ship had been in the southern part of Norway for some time. TV 2 reported that a course was set for Arctic waters. Geographical information, as meaningless and inaccurate as the rest of the sun-starved Norwegians in a country called the South.
The same information was received by the Arab TV company Al Jazeera. According to Teknisk Ukeblad [magazine for engineers], the course was taken to the Norwegian Sea.
Heading north, on a ferry crossing the West Fjord from Bognes to Ledingen, I found a clue. The representative of the Conservative Party of Norway, Bord Ludvig Thorheim, became one of the lucky ones who were allowed to board a ship in the Oslo Fjord.
In a post on Facebook* after the visit, which is described as very successful, he wishes the crew a successful trip to Westerolen.
Endless seas
Westerolen is not a point on the map in the middle of a narrow fjord. It is an archipelago north of the Lofoten Islands with a total area of 2,500 square kilometers, consisting of five municipalities.
However, wishing you a "good trip" can still make a difference. On the outside of Westerolen, flight restrictions were introduced around the same time.
I felt that I was on the right path.
Westerolen is surrounded by the sea not only from the outside. On the inside, it shares the West Fjord with the Lofoten Islands, a fjord that I have just crossed. The West Fjord was also subject to speculation during the military campaign.
In this case, it will not be the first time that an American aircraft carrier walks on this fjord. The USS Harry S. Truman warship was here in October 2018.
In the middle of the fjord
For those who might think that the "haystack" of Westerolen is somewhat similar to the Oslo Fjord, I have a few objections. The fjord is surrounded by a total of 14 municipalities. Given the curvature of the Earth's surface, it is difficult to detect a ship beyond ten nautical miles. Even such a huge aircraft carrier as the USS Gerald R. Ford would be difficult to detect in some parts of the West Fjord.
Ramsund is located in the inner part of the fjord, approximately where it meets the Ufut Fjord. The main base of the Norwegian Navy is located here. Ramsund is similar to Drobak Sound (south of Oslo).
There are still no signals from the USS Gerald R. Ford, while I continue to move north. I had to make a choice between the inside and outside of the geographical zone in the militarized part of the Far North.
Along the way, I managed to map some of the actions of Coast Guard ships and military auxiliary vessels in the area. Even an Italian military auxiliary ship spent some time in the salty waters of the northern Norwegian seas.
But that's not all
A few days ago, the Arctic Challenge Exercise began air force exercises. They mostly occur in the North, beyond the borders of Northern Europe. The US is also participating in these exercises. Possibly from the USS Gerald R. Ford.
According to the Norwegian Armed Forces, the carrier strike group will train with the Norwegian Army, Navy, air force and special operations forces.
I chose the West Fjord instead of the sea areas beyond Westerolen, and meanwhile US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced that the Americans would open a diplomatic mission in Troms (Norwegian only). This has been known for a long time, but the time of the announcement was hardly chosen by chance.
The informal meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers in Oslo is also hardly accidental in our general context. The fact that it is unofficial means that no decisions will be made. This will not happen until the alliance countries meet in Vilnius in mid-July. Then a decision will be made on the membership of Finland and possibly Sweden.
There is something else
But on this day something more happened.
Denmark intends to invest a record amount of DKK 143 billion in defense spending over the next ten years. The Baltic Sea, as well as the Faroe Islands and Greenland are at the top of the priority list.
Russia terminated the bilateral agreement with Finland on additional military assessment visits from June 1.
Despite the fact that this comment concerns NATO and the Far North: High North News has mapped 19 Russian military exercises in the North over the past month (only near Norway).
In other words, if the USS Gerald R. Ford is still moving north, it ends up in an area where Russian military exercises are taking place. The cheers in the Oslo Fjord will be replaced by shooting.
"Black Belt"
Late on Thursday evening I left the marina in Raftsundet, which divides Westerolen and Lofoten Islands into two parts. It is in this area that I have recorded military activity over the past couple of days. The ship's captain Trond Lekke has a "black belt" in sailing in the West Fjord.
He knows the name of every island and mountain peak stretching far beyond the horizon. A short break made this journey possible. For several hours the sea was calm, as if in protest against the endless cyclones that brought with them strong winds and snowfall.
Thanks to AIS, we see that the minesweeper left the Ramsund Naval Base before the connection was cut off.
Message
Then the message came: "Naval exercises [NATO "The Arctic Challenge“] will be held in the West Fjord area from June 2, 2023 at 06:00 UTC until further notice. The exercises require maneuvering at high speed. All vessels are advised to stay 1.5 nautical miles away from warships. Contact the Norwegian Joint Headquarters for more information. End of the message."
4,500 American soldiers and officers may have headed to West Fjord anyway. They will most likely remain in the sea area from the outside and will be content with sending some of the 90 aircraft on board the ship.
"Traffic jams" on the Lofoten Islands and Westerolen are unlikely. It is unlikely that there will be an armada of pleasure or fishing vessels "hunting" for photos of the largest warship in the world.
Black halibut is of great importance
The black halibut has found its way to the sea areas outside of Westerolen. Now it is of great importance.
On Friday morning, the fjord and the coast are still quiet. The temperature is six degrees Celsius. Forecasters say it will rain from the northeast.
KV Andenes is heading north to Tjeldsundet, and KNM Olav Tryggvason is moving towards the entrance to Ramsundet at a speed of 2.1 knots.
There are still no signals from the USS Gerald R. Ford.
Author: Arne O. Holm (Arne O. Holm)
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