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Malaysian Soldiers Get Feet Wet with CARAT Amphibious Operations

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS060730-09
Release Date: 7/30/2006 5:02:00 PM

By Senior Chief Mass Communication Specialist Melinda Larson, Destroyer Squadron 1 Public Affairs

MERSING, Malaysia (NNS) -- Soldiers of Malaysia’s 9th Royal Malay Regiment applied what they’ve learned from U.S. Marines and Sailors over the past week when the paratroopers made an amphibious landing here July 30 as part of exercise Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT).

The 160 soldiers, with weapons ready, stormed the beach in waves from two landing craft air cushions (LCAC) after spending two nights aboard dock landing ship USS Tortuga (LSD 46), and days of amphibious operations planning and discussion.

Once off the beach, the paratroopers fanned out in an orderly manner over a wide area and were soon in the grass and surrounding woodlands on their stomachs with weapons trained inland.

“The paratroopers know how to make an assault. It’s the amphibious planning process we’re sharing with them,” said Marine Master Gunnery Sgt. Mitch Freeman, operations chief for Combat Assault Battalion, 3rd Marine Division. “For an amphibious operation, they now have to take into consideration tides, speed across the water and suitability of a beach.”

Freeman and four other Marines from the Okinawa-based battalion were aboard Tortuga to share their amphibious landing skills with the Malaysian soldiers and their Malaysian armed forces counterparts.

“With U.S. guidance, we want to build our amphibious capabilities so that we can be relevant to you when we work as a coalition in any type of operation,” said Royal Malaysian Navy Lt. Cmdr. Martin A. Sebastian, assigned to his Navy’s Fleet Headquarters Warfare Research and Development staff. “Because all of our 13 states have a seafront, we are building the amphibious concept in every state in Malaysia. It is imperative for us to have maritime forces influencing our land forces.”

U.S. Marines were eager to assist.

“We’ve shared with them our planning model. They came up with their plan for this assault based on the model. The objective is to get the troops from ship to shore in a tactical and efficient manner,” said Marine Sgt. Maj. Paul McKenna, also of Combat Assault Battalion, 3rd Marine Division.

The day before the assault, the paratroopers toured the ship and were given familiarization tours of the two embarked LCACs from Assault Craft Unit 5 detachment Western Pacific Alfa. Also on that day, Beachmaster Unit 1 cleared the 200-yard stretch of beach in preparation for nine LCAC landings.

“This landing sets the pace,” Sebastian said. “Every year, we want to move forward from this exercise and come up with a road map how to utilize this relationship to build our capabilities.”

The amphibious assault was one of numerous training events taking place during the at-sea phase of CARAT Malaysia.

CARAT is an annual exercise series with six Southeast Asia nations is designed to enhance regional cooperation, promote understanding between participating military forces and develop operational readiness.

For more on CARAT, visit www.clwp.navy.mil/carat2006.

For related news, visit the Commander Task Force 73 Navy NewsStand page at www.news.navy.mil/local/clwp/.