COMMUNITY members had an opportunity to view a 55-foot High Value Target, or HVT, on display from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 4 at Airport Field on Saipan.
The Naval Surface Warfare Center, or NSWC, Detachment will be conducting land-based command and control activities with tactical military vehicles such as this.
Special Assistant for Military Affairs Glenna S. Palacios said the exercises that will take place will help the U.S. military refine its communication capabilities.
The static display of the HVT, for its part, allowed community members to learn about the NSWC’s naval technologies in support of the naval surface fleet with integration, testing, evaluation, and life-cycle engineering support, she added.
This is the second community outreach of its kind, with the first being on Rota, Palacios said.
“It’s really important for members of our community to know the capabilities of our military, considering events that are happening within our region, all the threats that we have. It’s really important that we support military training activities here, provided that all of the environmental mitigations are done properly so that we mitigate whatever impact,” she said.
In this case, there is no impact, other than just traversing public roads.
The joint forces conducted an initial run on Saturday morning, which turned out really well, Palacios said.
They intend to conduct another community outreach in the future, potentially near Beach Road, she added.
The team that conducted the static display of the HVT arrived months ago to plan and prepare for the activities, as well as coordinate with the Commonwealth Bureau of Military Affairs for needed support.
“We’re really happy to support it. I’m also very happy that they allowed us to have this static display today. That is one of the things that we want to do. We’re expecting more exercises coming our way. Whenever they bring their assets, we want to be able to have this event so that members of our community can have an opportunity to just check them out and just learn what the capabilities and the importance are of the defense in protecting our region,” said Palacios.
In coordination with the Department of Public Safety, convoy operations will commence until Monday, June 13, 2022, with DPS escort support while the HVTs are traveling on public roads.
The HVTs are not live missiles but are replica models made of tin sheets.
For more information, contact the Commonwealth Bureau of Military Affairs at (670) 483-3278 or email [email protected]
A static display of a High Vehicle Target.
Special Assistant for Military Affairs Glenna S. Palacios, left, and Capt. Jaylon Woodson of Joint Region Marianas, right, pose for a photo in front of a High Vehicle Target.
Children pose for a photo in an oversized semi-truck.
