Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Ronald Gutridge | 190222-N-UK333-176 SAN DIEGO (Feb. 22, 2019) - Capt. Michael Eberlein, (left), is...... read more read more
SAN DIEGO -- Cmdr. Joshua Powers relieved Capt. Michael Eberlein as commanding officer of Undersea Rescue Command (URC) during a change of command ceremony on Naval Air Station North Island (NASNI) Feb. 22
Capt. Peter Young, USN (ret) was the guest speaker at the ceremony. He congratulated Eberlein on a job well done and highlighted the accomplishments of the URC crew
“You are the men and women of Undersea Rescue Command,” said Young. “Professionally you have no other function than to be operationally ready to rescue submariners from downed submarines 24-hours a day, 365 days a year. There is no margin for error.”
On November 16, 2017, under Eberlein's command and at the request of the Argentinian Government, URC mobilized the Submarine Rescue Diving and Recompression System (SRDRS) utilizing the Pressurized Rescue Module (PRM), and the Submarine Rescue Chamber (SRC) and supporting equipment more than 6,000 miles to Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina to join the search and rescue mission for the missing submarine ARA San Juan.
“The San Juan tragedy could never have been a rescue," said Eberlein. "Nonetheless, the men and women of URC did what nobody had ever done before, mobilizing the full U.S. rescue capability thousands of miles away. Had the situation been different, we were ready – and we were there.”
Eberlein spoke in depth about the professionalism and hard work his Sailors bring to URC on a daily basis. Additionally, he spoke to the long history of submarine rescue to include the successful rescue of 33 Sailors on the USS Squalus in 1939.
Upon assuming command, Powers addressed the URC team about the future of URC and undersea rescue.
"Not everyone can do what we do and I am incredibly honored and humbled to be a part of this team,” said Powers. "Our mission is to be ready. You were ready when the call came out from Argentina and I have no doubt that we’ll be ready should that call come again.”
URC's mission is world-wide submarine assessment, intervention, and rescue. As a leader in undersea rescue, URC conducts numerous undersea exercises and conferences throughout the world using Deep Submergence Systems including the PRM, the SRC, the Sibitzky remote operating vehicle and Side Scan Sonar. URC is homeported at Naval Air Station North Island, Calif. and is assigned to Submarine Squadron 11, which is also home to five Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines, a Torpedo Retriever, and the floating dry-dock Arco.
| Date Taken: | 02.22.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 03.05.2019 19:22 |
| Story ID: | 312129 |
| Location: | SAN DIEGO, CA, US |
| Web Views: | 415 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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