Multinational divers take to the water during Sea Breeze 2010

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ODESSA, Ukraine ~~ Sailors of Underwater Construction Team (UCT) 1, from Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story, Va., prepare for one of many joint dive evolutions with Danish and Ukrainian navy divers on Ukrainian Western Naval Base during exercise Sea Breeze 2010 July 14. Sea Breeze is an annual maritime exercise in the Black Sea focusing on enhancing maritime security capabilities. Sea Breeze is the largest exercise this year in the Black Sea including 20 ships, 13 aircraft and more than 1,600 military members from Azerbaijan, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Moldova, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine and United States. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class (SW) Gary Keen)

ODESSA, Ukraine — With help from Constructionman 2nd Class (SCW/DV) Trevor Buckett attached to Underwater Construction Team (UCT) 1, from Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story, Va., Ukrainian navy Senior Diver Tkachenko Mihaylo prepares for one of many joint dive evolutions with Danish and Ukrainian navy divers on Ukrainian Western Naval Base during exercise Sea Breeze 2010 July 14. Sea Breeze is an annual maritime exercise in the Black Sea focusing on enhancing maritime security capabilities. Sea Breeze is the largest exercise this year in the Black Sea including 20 ships, 13 aircraft and more than 1,600 military members from Azerbaijan, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Moldova, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine and United States. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class (SW) Gary Keen)

ODESSA, Ukraine — Constructionman 3rd Class (SCW/DV) Tory Madsen and Constructionman 2nd Class (SCW/DV) Trevor Buckett attached to Underwater Construction Team (UCT) 1, from Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story, Va., prepair the KM-37 helmet for a one of many joint dive evolutions with Danish and Ukrainian navy divers on Ukrainian Western Naval Base during exercise Sea Breeze 2010 July 14. Sea Breeze is an annual maritime exercise in the Black Sea focusing on enhancing maritime security capabilities. Sea Breeze is the largest exercise this year in the Black Sea including 20 ships, 13 aircraft and more than 1,600 military members from Azerbaijan, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Moldova, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine and United States. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class (SW) Gary Keen

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July 14, 2010
Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class (SW) Gary Keen Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa

ODESSA, Ukraine — Danish, Ukrainian, and U.S. Navy divers took to the water for one of many dive evolutions during the multinational exercise Sea Breeze 2010 at the Ukrainian Western Naval Base, July 14.

Divers familiarized themselves with each other’s equipment, diving techniques, and procedures gaining from each other’s experience.

“It’s excellent working with different nations,” said Chief Steel Worker (SCW/DV) Daniel Lowery, officer in charge of Underwater Construction Team (UCT) 1. “We are here to become proficient in our job, work with other countries, and develop a relationship. All military services travel, so to go and be able to operate with each other is definitely better.”

Members from the Danish navy Dive Academy, Copenhagen; Ukrainian dive team from the Search and Rescue Center of the Ukrainian navy, Sevastopol; and UCT 1, from Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story, Va.; and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 8, from Sigonella, Italy, will be training together daily in controlled environments both in port and at sea.

“Today we are going to dive with some of the guys from Ukraine who have never used or tested dive helmets before,” said Diver Thomas Frederiksen, exercise participant from the Royal Danish navy Dive Academy. “Over the next couple of days we will continue training with the Ukraine divers and we’ll do some underwater welding as well.”

Surface supplied diving techniques, equipment familiarization, under water welding, salvage operations, ordnance identification and disposal and side scan sonar operations are a few of the events that will be covered during various diving phases of Sea Breeze.

“The training was very interesting,” said Ukrainian navy Senior Diver Tkachenko Mihaylo. “We have many of the same procedures as the other nations but our equipment is different and it is nice to learn about the different equipment.”

Sea Breeze is an invitational combined and joint maritime exercise in the Black Sea with the goals of enhancing Black Sea nation maritime security capabilities and improving Black Sea theater security cooperation strategies. Sea Breeze is the largest exercise this year in the Black Sea including 20 ships, 13 aircraft and more than 1,600 military members from Azerbaijan, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Moldova, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine and United States.

For more news from Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/Commander, U.S. 6th Fleet visitwww.c6f.navy.mil.