US Navy deploys three ocean surveillance ships near China.

According to information published by Global Times on March 24, 2022, the US Navy has reportedly deployed three ocean surveillance ships simultaneously to sensitive waters near China over the past week.
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Pathfinder-class survey ship USNS Bowditch (Picture source: U.S. Navy)

Since March 17, three US surveillance ships have been simultaneously operating in and near the South China Sea: the USNS Bowditch ocean survey ship in waters south of Hainan Island, the USNS Effective ocean surveillance ship in waters north of Huangyan Island, and the USNS Loyal ocean surveillance ship in waters to the east of the island of Taiwan, according to the SCSPI, a Beijing-based think tank.

The US Navy has frequently sent spy vessels near China in recent years, but it is unusual to see so many of them present at the same time.

An ocean survey ship mainly carries out missions like underwater terrain probing and hydrological surveying, and an ocean surveillance ship is usually responsible for the reconnaissance of underwater targets and the support of anti-submarine warfare, the SCSPI noted.

USNS Bowditch (T-AGS 62) is a Pathfinder-class survey ship. She is the third ship in the class. Bowditch is a part of a 29 ship Special Mission Ship program and operates in the South China Sea.

The Pathfinder-class survey ships are owned by the United States Navy and operated by Military Sealift Command for the Naval Oceanographic Office ("NAVOCEANO").

These ships are capable of carrying 34-foot (10 m) hydrographic survey launches (HSLs) for data collection in coastal regions with depths between 10 and 600 meters (33 and 1,969 ft) and in deep water to 4,000 meters (13,000 ft).