Essex (LHD 2) - Naval Cruise Book

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Col. John C. Garrett, Commanding Officer, 13th MEU (SOC) explains their intentions to Ambassador Brian C. Crocker, United States Ambassador to Kuwait. 13th MEU (SOC) conducts Eager Mace 95-1 United Stales helicopters broke the early morning silence over Kuwait City as nine CH- 53E Super Stallion and CH-46E Sea Knight helicopters carrying elements of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) assaulted Camp Monterey, Kuwait, to kick off Exercise Eager Mace 95- 1 . Exercise Eager Mace was a combined amphibious training exercise that demonstrated the capabilities of U. S. forces and the continuing U. S. commitment to the security and stability of the Gulf region. TTie 4,350 U. S. Marines and Sailors who took part in the nine-day exercise in December are from the Essex Amphibious Ready Group, which is comprised of Commander, Amphibious Squadron Five, USS Essex, USS Fort Fisher, USS Odgen and the 13th MEU(SOC), based out of Camp Pendleton, Calif. The 1 3th MEU(SOC) is comprised of Battalion Landing Team 3 1 , Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 161 (Reinforced), and MEU Service Support Group 13. The Kuwaiti Armed Forces 63rd Battalion (supported by a Kuwaiti artillery Battery) of the 26th Brigade was the major allied ground unit involved in Eager Mace. Marines from BLT 3 1 were the first combat Marines ashore, conducting a helibome assault in the vicinity of Camp Monterey, storming two buildings on the military camp 40 kilometers north of Kuwait City. Another 150 Marines conducted a surfacebome amphibious landing at Mina Ash Shuwayukh Port. Over the next 36 hours, the rest of the landing force came ashore aboard Air Cushion Landing Craft, Utility Landing Craft and helicopter sorties. The LC ACs also brought ashore the majority of the heavy equipment and firepower used during the exercise. A total of 2,000 Marines and Sailors, over 200 vehicles, and 30 aircraft came ashore. ( Below left ) LtCol. Philip Tracy, Commanding Officer, Battalion Landing Team 3 1, Sgt. Jay Chamberlain ( with binoculars ), and Cpl. Paul Ring, machine gunners from Weapons Company, BLT 3 1, look on as a Kuwaiti soldier fires a MK-19 grenade launcher downrange.

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r v ' ■ X. ■» ' a$. , vehicles and maneuver in a city on foot, he added. The LAV scouts and crews even encountered mock resistance in the MOUT facihty , dealing with Marines acting as enraged locals. It ' s good training for us because we could be called out to do something like. . .crowd control in some tiny village, said Lance Corporal John Rule, an LAR scout with Company D, 1 st LAR Bn. Throughout the training, safety was of paramount importance. A major challenge was adjusting to the hot, humid weather in the area. Heat casualties were kept to a minimum, due toconstantwaterintake. Supervisionis what really helped, saidRice. Supervision before you go to the field. Supervision while you ' re in the field. Small unit leaders ensured their Marines got plenty of water, by the numbers, if necessary , ' Grab a canteen, let ' s drink, ' ' ' Rice said. Throughout the whole week, the Singapore Battalion Guard provided support when and where required, in the form of transportation and liaison. You Marines aie quite courageous in the way you do things, said First Leftenant Lim Chi Kin, Liaison Officer for the Singapore Battalion Guard. You strive to achieve. You go to strange places and you tend to venture out here and there. Yes, you Marines are pretty daring, Kin said. ' ' iji- Right: Lcpl Victor Renteria, an operations clerk with the 13th MEU(SOC), finds a clear patch of fohage while on patrol in the dense jungles of Singapore.

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This is a rare opportunity — to be able to bring the entire MEU ashore fortraining, said Col. John C. Garrett, commanding officer of the 13th MEU{SOC). • ' ! am very pleased we have this chance, he added. Once the Marines were ashore, extensive training with the Kuwaiti Armed Forces was conducted. The training began with an operational overview between the Marines and their Kuwaiti counterparts, and progressed through the small unit level up to company sized maneuvers and battery-level firing exercises. the Kuwaiti soldiers got the chance to fire the M2 .50 cal. and MK19 machine guns at the Udayri Range with their Marine infantry counterparts. They were very attentive and willing to learn, said LCpl. Ian Scott, a machine gunner with Weapons Co., BLT 3 1. Learning new things was a two-way street. The Kuwaiti forces eager to share their military expertise and learn new warfighting skills, explained Sgt. Mohammed Yasheen, A kuwaiti .soldier who took part in the exercise. LCpl. Scott, who is from New Haven, Conn., agreed that the exchange of information was mutually beneficial. Working together really heightened our tactical proficiency, he said. And, Kuwait was a new place to go that borderlined on potential real- world activity in the area. It ' s something I ' ve never done before, Scott added. The Kuwaitis also got a chance to see antitank weapons and light armored vehicles in action at the range. Tliey even participated in several fastroping maneuvers, .something the Kuwaitis don ' t usually do. The Marines of Alpha Battery, 1 1 1 , the 1 3th MEU(SOC) ' s artillery arm, also had a chance to gain new experience while working with the Kuwaitis. The Kuwaiti military currently uses the Ml 09 self-propelled Howitzer, an indirect-fire weapon that the Marine Corps phased out of its arsenal a few years ago. (Above) CH-53E and UH-IN helicopters off the coast of Kuwait launch from the flight deck of USS Essex in support of EAGER MACE 95-1. Amphibious Assault Vehicles come ashore at the Mina Ash Shuwaykh Port.