Free Republic

Chinook Crews Swap in BahrainStory Number: NNS040121-05Release Date: 1/21/2004 5:00:00 PMBy Journalist 1st Class (SW) Dennis J. Herring, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander, 5th Fleet Public AffairsMANAMA, Bahrain (NNS) -- Crew members on the first coastal patrol vessel to participate in the Chief of Naval Operations’ sea swap initiative met face-to-face Jan. 8, to pass ownership of the ship to the new crew in Bahrain. Off-going USS Chinook (PC 9) Sailors, who have manned the ship since July 2003, spent the Thursday morning performing various demonstrations at sea with the oncoming crew, USS Tempest (PC 2) Sailors of...

Another task in the Coalition's nation building mission is ridding Iraq's Persian Gulf waters of pirates. Coalition forces maintain a significant security presence in Iraqi waters in support of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1483. Under 1483, coalition forces will provide law enforcement and security functions for the area until an Iraqi maritime security force can be established. During the height of the war, the Navy was on guard against pro-Saddam forces using the small dhows as bomb platforms. Local pirates are believed to routinely prey upon both local traders and smugglers in Gulf waters. Most incidents are never...

Navy NewStand Story Number: NNS030411-08 Release Date: 4/11/2003 12:43:00 PM From Coast Guard Forces Southwest Asia, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command Public Affairs ARABIAN GULF (NNS) -- Coast Guard Cutter Wrangell (WPB 1332) and Navy Patrol Coastal ship USS Firebolt (PC 10), with embarked Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) 406, escorted the first commercially transported humanitarian aid shipment into the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr April 11. The Motor Vessel Manar, owned by Manar Marine Services of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), delivered almost 700 tons of humanitarian aid including food, water, first aid and transport vehicles. This aid...