United States Navy vessel USS Hershel “Woody” Williams arrived in Walvis Bay on Thursday on a visit that will see it conducting joint military exercises with the Namibian Navy.USS Hershel “Woody” Williams commanding officer Chad Graham said Namibia is one of his country’s most important partners in promoting peace and security in Africa and that his crew would use the visit to engage with Namibian government and military officials.  

“We are excited to visit Walvis Bay and work in concert with our Namibian partners on the kind of maritime security training that keeps this region and its domestic industries safe,” Graham said.

The vessel plans to participate in joint maritime security exercises with the Namibian Navy, including a passing exercise, and helicopter insertion and casualty evacuation drills.

USS Hershel “Woody” Williams is the first warship permanently assigned to the US Africa Command area of responsibility. 

It is a highly flexible platform that may be used across a broad range of military operations, and acts as a mobile sea base and is part of the critical access infrastructure that supports the deployment of forces and supplies to support missions assigned.