The 40th escort formation of the Navy successfully escorted three fishing boats, and the fishing boat crew expressed their thanks and blessings one after another—— "Chinese Navy accompanies me on a long voyage" ■ Yang Jie and Tang Wen The Navy's 40th escort formation Yueyang ship escorted Chinese fishing boats. Photo by Yang Xiong The crew of the protected fishing boat hung banners and waved greetings to thank the escort formation. Photographed by Hu Weinan In the Gulf of Aden, the sea breeze is blowing and the sun is burning. At the junction of the sea and the sky, a warship is chopping waves to escort the three fishing boats of the same company all the way. "Thank the motherland Navy for escorting me." On April 2 local time, when the Yueyang ship of the 40th convoy formation of our navy was launched, three fishing boats hung banners outside the cockpit. All the crew gathered in line, held high the five-star red flag and waved to the escort officers and soldiers. This is the eighth time since 2013 that our escort formation has escorted the company's fishing boats in the Gulf of Aden. "The Chinese navy will accompany me on a long voyage." According to the manager of the company, as early as late January this year, the company sent an escort application to the formation. Previously, in 2019, two fishing boats of the company were attacked by unidentified armed elements when passing through the Red Sea. It was precisely because the Chinese Navy escort formation arrived in time that the crew were able to get out of danger. Chinese warships drive away pirates, rescue crew members and escort ships to and from the Gulf of Aden. This "most dangerous sea area" has become a "golden waterway" again, which is inseparable from the persistence and dedication of escort officers and soldiers day after day. Early in the morning, when I walked into the formation command post, I heard the voice of password, telephone and keyboard, and all kinds of information were intertwined and summarized here. On this side, foreign affairs translator Jiang Changming repeatedly looked through the e-mail, carefully sorted out the ship information, and carefully checked the escort applications sent by ships from various countries; On the other side, several staff officers are sitting in front of the display and control console to discuss and study the details of the next batch of escort operations. Turning to the formation schedule, I saw that the action plans of each ship were full. "More and more ships take the initiative to seek the escort of the Chinese Navy, and many passing ships rush to the vicinity of the starting point and temporarily apply to join the formation." Guo Tian, the staff officer of the formation command post, introduced that in order to better complete the escort task, they scientifically coordinate the actions of the formation forces, flexibly adjust the escort methods such as accompanying escort, relay escort and regional escort, improve the deployment level according to the actual situation, timely organize drills, maintain the combat state of officers and soldiers, and ensure that the protected ship is safe. "Starboard alert report, I monitor the sea area is normal!" On the compass platform of Yueyang ship, staff sergeant Xu Zhihong of the special corps, who was standing guard, paid close attention to the sea and air situation. "Although pirates are no longer as rampant as they were in those days, the sea area is still not calm and we must always be vigilant." Xu Zhihong said. Lin Zhesheng, the trainee vice captain of the Yueyang ship, who went to the Gulf of Aden for the fourth time, also felt the same. In 2009, he bravely entered the ocean with the third escort formation. At that time, rampant pirates often attacked passing ships in groups. "Sometimes in just one morning, we have to drive away more than a dozen suspicious boats." Recalling the scenes at that time, Lin Zhesheng still has a fresh memory. Now, more than ten years are fleeting. Lin Zhesheng really feels the changes in this sea area: "there are fewer pirates and more merchant ships. Everything shows that our efforts have paid off." Below the waterline, the cabin was filled with the roar of the main engine. Second Sergeant Wang Dajun, as always, stuck to his post, with a flashlight and a listening stick, patrolled back and forth along the intricate pipeline circle after circle. For Wang Dajun, although it is difficult for him to enjoy the beautiful scenery of flying fish hitting the water and dolphins chasing the waves, he rarely witnessed the warm moment when the protected ship said goodbye to the warship, but the duty of guarding the "heart" of the warship made him proud to say: "I feel the heartbeat of the warship in the cabin, maintain the normal operation of the main engine, and ensure the smooth voyage of the warship, so I can also feel the full glory." "Thanks for the escort of the motherland's warships! Naval day is coming. I wish you a happy holiday!" On April 4 local time, three fishing boats expressed their gratitude to the escort officers and soldiers. On this day, the 40th convoy formation of the Navy successfully completed the 1482nd convoy mission, which once again demonstrated the responsibility and responsibility of the Navy as a big country with practical actions. (outlook new era)