Photo By Staff Sgt. Jon Soles | Sgt. Ryan Waclawski, (left) a watercraft operator and native of Upper Marlboro, Md.,...... read more read more
ATLANTIC OCEAN – When most people think of military ships and sailing they tend to think of the Navy, but recently a crew of Army Soldiers took to the deep blue sea aboard Army Logistics Support Vessel 8, the Maj. Gen. Robert Smalls as part of Exercise Nationwide Move 15.
Nationwide Move 15 is an annual Army Reserve approved functional training exercise designed to provide Reserve Component transportation units with valuable, realistic training, by conducting real-world operations in support of Continental United States (CONUS) activities.
The Smalls is one of only eight LSVs in the Army’s inventory. It is designed to cross oceans and sail right up to the shore to deploy vehicles, equipment and personnel.
The watercraft operators aboard the 318-foot long ship affectionately refer to themselves as "deckies," a job that involves working on the deck of a ship that can be dangerous and exhausting.
The elite group of Soldiers is assigned to the 203rd Transportation Detachment, 359th Transportation Battalion, 310th Expeditionary Sustainment Command.
They are responsible for all of the deck activities onboard to include onloading and offloading cargo, operating the windlass, anchors, ramps, radar and mooring the ship.
They boarded the ship recently on a mission to move a group of military vehicles for the 50th Independent Brigade Combat Team, New Jersey Army National Guard from Bayonne, New Jersey, to Woods Hole, Massachusetts, as part of the 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) exercise NWM 15.
Sgt. Mike Pennington, a watercraft operator assigned to the 203rd Trans. Det., said he is proud of his job as a "deckie" and his fellow Soldiers who share the responsibility of making sure cargo is securely delivered to complete missions.
"We're the strong backs of the unit," said Pennington, a native of Erie, Pennsylvania. "When stuff needs to be moved, we are here to move it."
Pennington enlisted in the Army in 1997, originally as an ammunition specialist, but it wasn't until his 10th year in the Army Reserve that he became a "deckie," a job he said he wants to do until retirement.
"I wanted to do something fun, something I could do until I was 60 years old," Pennington said. "I came down here to the 203rd Trans. Co. and they took me sailing during my first battle assembly with them. I fell in love with it and I have been with them ever since."
Watercraft operators learn to do the same jobs as their counterparts in the Navy or Merchant Marines. Many factors go into the job including judging distances when pulling in mooring lines or dropping anchor, judging the ocean tides or securing deck gear to prevent items from being washed overboard.
"We have to make sure all our safety gear is working and make sure every hatch is closed and everything is tied down securely," said Spc. Carlos Hill of Washington, a watercraft operator assigned to the 203rd Trans. Det. "Pulling in the lines to sail can be stressful because we have to move really fast before the ship's engines start and we move from the pier."
On May 10, the Maj. Gen. Robert Smalls pulled into the harbor at Woods Hole, Mass., to drop off the vehicles for awaiting New Jersey National Guard Soldiers. The "deckies" sprang to action, dropping the ramp on the deck and coordinating the cargo offload.
After the huge ramp dropped on the dock, the National Guard Soldiers ran onto the ship and immediately started the vehicles and prepared to drive them off as deckies loosened the chains holding them down and directed them off the vessel. Within two minutes, all the vehicles were onshore and the ramp closed. It is the kind of precision and efficiency watercraft operators strive for on mission, according to Pennington, who said he has participated in at least a hundred such operations.
"The sense of accomplishment feels great," Pennington said. "It is the coolest thing because we can see the fruits of our labor when we see the cargo we haul move off the ship at the destination."
The accomplishment didn’t come without its challenges though. The deckies had to contend with 15-knot winds and a strong current, which both worked against them while the ship was docked for the transfer of vehicles.
Though speed is paramount when making a tactical offload, it doesn't mean the deckies can be careless about safety. Working on a ship presents many dangers. Every Soldier is issued a life jacket with whistles and chemical activated lights as well as immersion suits for protection against the cold.
"There is always the very real danger of going overboard," Pennington said. "Everything on the ship is made of heavy metal with heavy chains, gears and pinch points that present risks to lose life and limb."
In addition to their many duties, such as firefighting, which they share with watercraft engineers, the deckies are also the ship's rescue team. In the event that a Soldier falls overboard, they are trained to operate the fast rescue boat fastened to the stern. They are also the ship's rescue swimmers.
The small group are also the ship's lookouts, working two four-hour shifts per day. They provide eyes to help the skipper verify what radar shows, and what it doesn't show. Every ship in the world is required to have lookouts, and they assist the radar in preventing collisions with other vessels or objects.
The deckies also help the marine warrant officers navigate the ship.
Whether it’s loading equipment, keeping watch, operating fast rescue boats or training to fight fires, the deckies keep the ship alive with activity and help ensure the mission is a success.
The deckies assigned to the ship are the only Soldiers trained to sail the vessel and perform time-critical tactical loadings and offloadings. The recent five-day sail of the vessel from Maryland to Massachusetts provided the Soldiers with vital training and skills while providing the vital sea transportation asset portion of Nationwide Move 15.
| Date Taken: | 05.11.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 05.27.2015 10:10 |
| Story ID: | 164629 |
| Location: | BAYONNE, NJ, US |
| Web Views: | 364 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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