USS Santa Barbara Conducts First-Ever Visit to Colombo, Sri Lanka

USS Santa Barbara Visits Sri Lanka

Cmdr. Adam Ochs, commanding officer of the Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) poses for a photo with senior Sri Lankan defense officials in the mission bay during a tour, Aug. 16, 2025. Santa Barbara conducted a port visit to Colombo, Sri Lanka while on a rotational deployment to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to strengthen partnerships in the South Asia region. (U.S. Navy photo by Electronics Technician …

USS Santa Barbara Conducts First-Ever Visit to Colombo, Sri Lanka

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (Aug. 22, 2025) -- The Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) conducted its first-ever port visit to Colombo, Aug. 16-21. During their time in port, the crew hosted senior Sri Lankan officials aboard to display the combat capabilities of the LCS mission set and strengthen the U.S.-Sri Lanka partnership, Aug. 16.

U.S. warship docks in Colombo, boosting defence cooperation

Sri Lanka’s Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd), visited the USS Santa Barbara (LCS), an Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship of the United States Navy, currently docked at the Port of Colombo, today (August 16). Defence Secretary, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd), and Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy, Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda, also joined the Deputy Minister on this occasion. The delegation was r…

US combat ship to arrive in Colombo after visits of Indian navy tanker, destroyer