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New SEAL Training Facility Opens on Fort Story

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS060926-15
Release Date: 9/26/2006 3:44:00 PM

By Mass Communication Specialist Seamen Kelly E. Barnes, Fleet Public Affairs Center Atlantic

FORT STORY, Va. (NNS) -- Commander, Naval Special Warfare Group (NSWG) 2 hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony Sept. 25, to celebrate the completion of the new Naval Special Warfare East Close Quarter Combat (CQC) Training Range on Fort Story.

The new $6.1 million training site is designed for local Navy SEALs (Sea, Air, Land) to conduct live-fire training for basic to advanced CQC qualification skill levels in both urban and maritime environments.

“The facility provides state-of-the-art training opportunities in the Hampton Roads area,” said Capt. Chaz Heron, commodore of NSWG 2. “The local facility will allow these warriors to stay home and prepare for combat.”

The site provides the unique opportunity to allow SEALs to train in going from water to land and transition between the two seamlessly, said Heron. The site was built locally so SEALs won’t need to travel out of state for training and will be able to spend more time at home with their families, when not operational.

The three-story facility has 16 reconfigurable rooms with movable walls which can make different sized spaces for training.

The third story of the facility is designed as a ship’s bridge and has simulated maritime-type hatchway entry points for training involving aerial insertion and assault.

“Every move will be captured,” said Larry Pacifico, the facility manager, concerning the 126 cameras that will be placed throughout all the rooms to monitor the scenarios and assess training to provide immediate feedback.

Speakers are also wired into all the rooms to add sounds to enhance the realism during the training scenarios.

“Reality is the name of the game in this kind of training,” said Pacifico.

The site’s interior is designed for live-fire and the walls are protected with a plastic that absorbs the impact of the ammunition, said Pacifico.

East Coast-based SEAL teams will begin training in the facility in October.