USS Green Bay, USCG team up for transport
By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Anaid Banuelos Rodriguez, USS Green Bay Public Affairs
7th FLEET AREA OF OPERATIONS (Dec. 6, 2018) The amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay (LPD 20) embarked United States Coast Guard Transportable Port Security Boats (TPSB) assigned to Port Security Unit (PSU) 305, November 27.
PSU 305’s mission is to provide port security in support of military and humanitarian operations worldwide. The unit was recently in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea along with Green Bay providing maritime security in support of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference.
“The U.S. Coast Guard supporting the APEC in Papua New Guinea was a very challenging but rewarding experience,” said Chief Machinery Technician Brian Padgett. “Being a first for the U.S. Coast Guard working with the Royal Australian Defense Forces onboard the HMAS Adelaide (L01) required a lot of logistics and manpower before and during the mission. It was a very unique experience for me and I would be happy to work with the Australians again.”
PSU 305 worked with a variety of countries and militaries while in Port Moresby to include the New Zealand Royal Navy, Australian Royal Navy, Australian Army and Papua New Guinea Water Police. After the APEC conference concluded, the Adelaide and Green Bay worked together with the Coast Guard to ensure the efficient transfer of PSU 305’s boats.
“The USCG PSU 305 has a very specialized skill set that was the perfect fit for providing security during the APEC conference in Port Moresby harbor,” said Captain Tom Shultz, Commanding Officer of Green Bay. “With Green Bay forward deployed from Sasebo, Japan, we haven’t had the opportunity to work with the USCG previously. We learned a lot operating directly with them in Port Moresby, seeing just how capable and critical they are to providing in depth port security.”
Loading the boats onto Green Bay required coordination between various departments to ensure a safe evolution.
“Working with the USS Green Bay Sailors and Marines to efficiently onload the U.S. Coast Guard's 8 TPSBs and 6 containers was a very smooth and unique experience for me,” said Padgett. “Considering the Coast Guard trains and loads these assets primarily into aircraft, having to load our boats onto the flight deck of a Navy LPD was a little different but nothing that couldn’t be accomplished. This is something that has probably never been done before and was definitely a learning experience for myself. But it couldn’t have been a smoother process transferring everything, thanks to the Combat Cargo Marines and Sailors from Green Bay who assisted. Overall this was a great experience and it's been a pleasure to have been able to complete this mission with the USS Green Bay. ”
Green Bay, a San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship, was commissioned by the U.S. Navy in 2009. The ship is forward deployed to Sasebo, Japan as part of Commander, Amphibious Force 7th Fleet and is operating in the region to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as a ready-response force for any type of contingency. Port Security Unit 305 was formally commissioned on Aug.19, 1995, at the Coast Guard Training Center in Yorktown, Virginia, and is one of eight PSUs in the Coast Guard. For more information about Green Bay, go to https://www.facebook.com/LPD20.GreenBay/. For more information about PSU 305, go to https://www.pacificarea.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Deployable-Specialized-Forces/Port-Security-Unit-305-Fort-Eustis-VA/.