22d MEU (SOC) and WASP Strike Group pass through the Straight of Gibraltar
Marine Corps News
Release Date: 3/3/2004
Story by Gunnery Sgt. Keith A. Milks
ABOARD THE USS WASP IN THE WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN (March 2, 2004) -- Surrounded by orbiting helicopters akin to birds of prey, the ships of Expeditionary Strike Group 2 threaded their way through the Straight of Gibraltar in a long staggered column and entered the Mediterranean Sea after an 11-day voyage across the Atlantic Ocean.
Consisting of the amphibious assault ships WASP, WHIDBEY ISLAND, and SHREVEPORT, destroyer MCFAUL, cruisers LEYTE GULF and YORKTOWN, and attack submarine CONNECTICUT, ESG 2's passage through the Straight gave the ships' crews and the embarked Marines and Sailors of the 22d Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) the rare opportunity to see two continents at the same time.
Known to ancient mariners as the 'Passage of Hercules," the Straight (not 'Straights') of Gibraltar is the 36-mile-long waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea, and cuts between southernmost Spain and northernmost Morocco. At its narrowest, the Straight is eight miles wide, while its entrance to the Atlantic is its widest, at 27 miles. The most dominant features of the Straight are the two peaks flanking the eastern entrance; Gibraltar to the north and Mount Acha to the south. These are often referred to as the Gates of Hercules.
In light of recent terrorist attacks such as that against the USS COLE in October 200, and in order to counter the possibility of attacks as the ships passed through the relatively narrow (in a nautical sense) straight, ESG 2 maintained an active force protection stance. Gunners manned the ship's defensive weaponry and helicopters circled overhead keeping a wary eye of the fishing, passenger, and leisure craft sailing the calm blue waters.
For Cpl. Rendal L. Ladner, an administrator serving with the MEU Personnel Administrative Center (MPAC), the MEU's voyage through the Straight of Gibraltar presented the 21-year-old Gulfport, Mississippi native with her first glimpse of a foreign land.
"To go out and see the world was one of the reasons I joined the Marine Corps," she said, "and this was an opportunity most people never get."
The 22d MEU (SOC) left the United States on February 19 for a deployment to the European and Central Command theaters. While in the Mediterranean region, the MEU is scheduled to execute an amphibious landing exercise in the Adriatic and conduct at least one port visit.
Consisting of its Command Element, Battalion Landing Team 1st Bn., 6th Marines, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 266 (Reinforced), and MEU Service Support Group 22, the 22d MEU (SOC) is commanded by Col. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr.
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