Photo By Lance Cpl. Jacob Barber | Indonesian Marines perform martial arts stunts for U.S. Marines following an...... read more read more
BANONGAN, Indonesia – Journalists lined the shores of Banongan Beach as amphibious assault vehicles rose out of the Flores Sea onto the sands of the beach, signifying the start of an amphibious assault.
Like much of the training in exercise Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT), the assault was thought of, planned, and executed bilaterally with and for two nations—the United States and Indonesia.
U.S. Marines with Landing Force CARAT, Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force took part in the mission as they worked alongside their counterparts and foreign partners the Indonesian Marines. Amphibious assault vehicle operators and mechanics with 2nd platoon, Fox Company, Amphibious Assault Vehicle Battalion also were present, supporting their brothers on land and at sea.
When asked about the relationship between the infantry Marines and the amphibious assault platoon, Capt. Christopher Richardella, commanding officer of Fox Company, 2/3, said “It’s an intertwined relationship that goes far. You don’t really have one without the other. Both jobs were made to work together and we’ve really emphasized that on this training operation.”
Smoke filled the sky as the mission began, AAVs gathered at their rallying points where both nations’ Marines filed out one by one to attack the enemy role players hidden throughout the shoreline.
Squads of U.S. Marines ran through buildings, clearing all and everything that stood in their way, while Indonesian Marines patrolled through the countryside to provide security and cover fire for their counterparts.
“It is a new experience for me and a lot of the other Marines because we don’t get to practice with U.S. Marines that often,” said Sugihanpon Rio, a sniper and Indonesian Marine with the Regu Pandu Tempur Tim unit. “There is not much difference between the way we practice, but this helps us know more about each other.”
This event emphasized many of the goals for CARAT by outlining one of the mission’s strongest points - bilateral training. The Marines from both countries worked together to fulfill the focus of mission accomplishment and many said the assault was a success because of the combined strengths of both teams.
“The Indonesian Marines had great communication with each other and it made the whole process a lot smoother,” said Lance Cpl. Andrew Hiebert, rifleman, 2nd platoon, Fox Company, 2/3. “We also were on the same page with the AAV crewman, so all the factors connected and we were able to execute the mission really well.”
As Hiebert said, many factors were in affect when planning the operation and it could only be successful with the help of all three units combined.
The assault evolution ended with a closing ceremony on the beach with several people in attendance, including Commander, Task Group 73.1, Commodore, Capt. David A. Welch, and U.S Navy Rear Adm. Tom Carney, Commander, Task Force 73, who said a few words on behalf of all the Marines in attendance.
“You’ve executed one of the hardest operations in our military - an amphibious assault attack,” Carney said. “Watching this has brought to mind that there is no better reassurance message than hearing the Marines have landed.”
| Date Taken: | 06.04.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 06.15.2012 03:26 |
| Story ID: | 90044 |
| Location: | ID |
| Web Views: | 140 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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