Associated Press February 2, 2006
Navy commissions first active-duty anti-terror squadron
By Seth Hettena
IMPERIAL BEACH, Calif.Six years after suicide bombers killed 17 sailors on the USS Cole in Yemen, the Navy on Thursday commissioned its first active-duty unit with the job of thwarting a repeat of the attack.
Naval Coastal Warfare Squadron Five will protect shipping lanes and U.S. forces overseas, defend harbors and provide port security with small, fast gunboats not seen since Vietnam. The squadron, expanding to 325 men and women, is expected to make its first deployment in 2007 to either Kuwait, South Korea or the Horn of Africa.
"A lot of the Navy is behind the scenes. They're not in Iraq. They're not in Afghanistan. We, on the other hand, are right in there, on the land," said Lt. T. Wilkes Coleman, 28, of Tuscaloosa, Ala. "It's totally different than anything we've ever seen before and what makes it unique is it's the first-of-its kind."
The squadron will deploy with a fleet of 18 aluminum-hulled boats equipped with .50-caliber and 7.62mm machine guns and grenade launchers that can be loaded onto a C-17 transport plane and flown around the globe. In the water, they are capable of reaching speeds in excess of 35 knots. Elements of the squadron go ashore with a mobile sensor unit to provide surveillance of the operating area and relay communications.
"I don't think a lot of people understand the Navy's got a lot of sailors in harm's way," said Rear Adm. Donald K. Bullard, who oversees the squadron as head of a new Navy command for anti-terrorism and force protection.
Officers and enlisted sailors shun traditional Navy whites in favor of fatigues, a reminder of their role as a combat force. Training scenarios include how to deal with a suicide bomber riding an explosive-laden Jet-Ski or in a fishing dhow, Bullard said. If needs arise, the squadron can also augment the Coast Guard and local authorities to protect the U.S. coast.
The squadron falls under Naval Expeditionary Combat Command, a 40,000-man force headed by Bullard that was created last month. The command is reorganizing the Navy to fill the gaps in security between the big ships that patrol the deep blue waters and the troops ashore that were exploited by the Cole attack. A similar squadron will stand up later this year in Norfolk, Va.
"They are bringing together a whole series of related types of units that are going to be, one would imagine, increasingly important as operations keep getting closer to the shore," said John Pike of globalsecurity.org. "It's very symptomatic of how the Navy's thinking has changed since the end of the Cold War."
The Navy used patrol, or PT, boats during World War II, including one famously commanded by future President John F. Kennedy. Gunboats and patrol craft were used again during the Vietnam War, whose river missions were popularized by the 1979 film "Apocalypse Now." But coastal warfare has since been relegated to the reserves, and serving on big ships remained the pathway to advancement in the Navy.
Naval Coastal Warfare Squadron Five began setting up shop at a little-used landing strip in Imperial Beach, south of downtown San Diego in September 2004. Since then, interest in the unit has grown and the squadron has had to turn people away from the command due to the squadron's tough physical qualifications.
To prepare for grueling 12-hour shifts in the 120-degree heat of the Persian Gulf, the squadron stresses physical training. Members get paid for 2-3 hours of physical training each day. Those who can't keep up get two chances to make the grade or they're out.
"In this environment, physical endurance can make the difference between life and death," Bullard said.
© Copyright 2006, Associated Press
