The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54) conducted a live-fire gunnery exercise with the Halifax class frigate HMCS Winnipeg (FFH 338) off the coast of Japan, Nov. 5, 2020.

The evolution was part of a bilateral exercise to increase warfighting readiness and interoperability between United States Navy and Royal Canadian Navy forces.

“This exercise was a great opportunity for the crew of Curtis Wilbur to train outside our normal routine,” said Ensign William Lee, gunnery officer of USS Curtis Wilbur.

The gunnery exercise demonstrated various weapons capabilities of Curtis Wilbur and Winnipeg and allowed them to improve proficiency against a simulated surface threat while exercising live-fire engagements utilizing shipboard weaponry.

“We were able to test and train our close-in weapon system (CIWS), 25mm machine gun and .50-caliber machine gun operators,” said Lee. “Being able to test those abilities as well as our crew’s abilities against a moving surface target was a great opportunity.”

Curtis Wilbur is assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, the Navy’s largest forward-deployed DESRON and the U.S. 7th Fleet’s principal surface force.