Cavalier India Defence Training Academy

India and the US signed LEMOA last August, giving the militaries of both countries access to each other’s facilities for supplies and repairs. The Indian Navy vessels INS Kadmatt (P29), left, and INS Satpura (F48) (AP/PTI/File Photo) In a significant step forward in the increasing military cooperation between India and the US, a US Navy tanker refuelled an Indian Navy ship in the Sea of Japan this week. This is the first time an Indian ship has been refuelled at sea by a US tanker, an activity facilitated by operationalisation of the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Association (LEMOA) between the two countries. INS Satpura, an Indian Navy stealth frigate, was refuelled by USNS John Ericsson, a US Navy tanker, as a Replenishment at Sea (RAS) activity carried out under Exercise PASSEX (participation exercise). Besides INS Satpura, INS Kadmatt and a Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force vessel, J S Inazuma, also participated in the exercise, which was conducted from November 3-6 in the Se...