A geyser of water shot into the air when the decommissioned amphibious transport dock USS Juneau was struck by a torpedo fired by the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force as part of a live-fire ship sinking exercise, photos recently posted by the U.S. military show.
The torpedo was the final salvo used to sink the Juneau earlier this month as part of Valiant Shield, a biennial exercise with U.S. and allied forces, said Lt. Cmdr. Katie Koenig, director of the Combined, Joint Information Bureau for the exercise.
A Navy P-8A Poseidon fired an AGM-84D Harpoon missile and a B-2 Spirit bomber launched a Long Range Anti-Ship Missile, or LRASM, during the June 27 ship sinking exercise, Koenig told Task & Purpose.
U.S. Navy, Air Force, Army, and special operations forces heavily damaged the ship before it was torpedoed, Koenig added.
The Juneau was sunk about 200 nautical miles off the coast of Guam. The ship was commissioned in 1969 and saw service during the Vietnam War. The vessel also took part in the preparations for an underground nuclear test in 1971; it was part of the response to the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989; and it transported Marines during the Gulf War in 1991. After nearly 40 years of service, the Juneau was decommissioned in 2008.
U.S. military services have long sunk decommissioned ships to test their weapons in live fire exercises. Other decommissioned vessels that have been sent to the bottom of the ocean in the name of training include the amphibious transport dock USS Cleveland, which was struck by two Precision Strike Missiles, or PrSMs, during a 2024 exercise. The sinking of the Cleveland marked the first time the land-based missile had been used against a ship. The PrSM made its combat debut this year as part of U.S. military operations against Iran, dubbed “Epic Fury.”
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Training how to sink warships is especially important as the U.S. prepares for a possible fight against China. A 2024 Defense Department report found that China’s navy had more than 370 vessels. The U.S. Navy currently operates 291 battle force ships, according to the service’s shipbuilding plan.
As part of its reorganization effort focusing on China, the Marine Corps has equipped units in Okinawa with anti-ship missiles.
The skills honed during ship-sinking exercises can also be used against other adversaries. In early March, a Navy Los Angeles-class submarine torpedoed an Iranian warship,marking the first time since 1945 that a Navy submarine had used a torpedo to sink an enemy vessel.
