Essex Amphibious Ready Group News

The Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) transited the Straits of Malacca and conducted routine operations in the South China Sea as part of a deployment to the Western Pacific Nov. 7-10. The ARG's flagship, the multipurpose amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2), conducted the patrol as the amphibious transport dock USS Anchorage (LPD 23) and the amphibious dock landing ship USS Rushmore (LSD 47) prepared for bilateral training exercises with Brunei and Malaysia. On Nov. 10, Rushmore began offloading troops for the 2015 iteration of Malaysia-U.S. Amphibious Exercise (MALUS AMPHEX 2015), in which U.S. personnel will train with Malaysian amphibious units ashore to instruct and develop core competencies and enhance interoperability with a key partner nation in the region.

San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship USS Anchorage (LPD 23) rendered assistance and provided aid to the crew of a stranded Sri Lankan-flagged fishing vessel, M/V Lakshan, Nov. 4 at 12:30 p.m. local time. Watchstanders spotted six mariners aboard the vessel waving articles of clothing in an attempt to get the attention of the U.S. Navy ship as Anchorage was transiting through the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. The commanding officer aboard Anchorage, Capt. J.J. Cummings, ordered the dispatch of a rescue and assistance team, which determined Lakshan had experienced a crank case explosion, leaving both engines unworkable and beyond at-sea repair.

USS Rushmore (LSD 47) rendered assistance to 65 people on makeshift bamboo rafts in the waters between the Indonesian islands of Kalimantan and Sulawesi June 10. Shipboard lookouts spotted the distressed persons waving orange and white flags. Rushmore's commanding officer, Cmdr. Thomas Stephens, ordered the launch of a small boat with two search and rescue swimmers to provide assistance. Rushmore Sailors discovered 65 people on sinking bamboo rafts tied together with no means of propulsion, food or water. Sailors and Marines brought all 65 people on board the Rushmore for medical attention and will coordinate with local officials for their well-being.

Military Sealift Command-chartered cargo ship MV Combi Dock III departed Subic Bay, Philippines, Oct. 30, carrying 460 pieces of U.S. Marine Corps equipment including Humvees, trucks, ambulances, firefighting vehicles, helicopters and supplies that were used during the recent amphibious landing exercise, or PHIBLEX, held in the Philippines Oct. 14-18. The equipment is being returned to Marine Corps bases on Okinawa, Japan. MSC-chartered high-speed vessel HSV Westpac Express also participated in the exercise by transporting Marines and their equipment between Okinawa and the Philippines.

Thirty Japanese contractors serving under Ship Repair Facility (SRF) Detachment Sasebo were recognized May 25 for providing speedy maintenance and repairs to USS Juneau (LPD 10) and USS Tortuga (LSD 46) to get them underway in order to meet operational commitments. The repair facility workers fixed Tortuga’s 20-ton boom and Juneau’s refrigeration system in a compressed time frame. Deputy Commander, Amphibious Force, 7th Fleet, Capt. Brian T. Smith, presented each with a command coin and thanked them for their efforts. “Once again, Ship Repair Facility Detachment Sasebo met the challenges of keeping our ships operationally ready,” said Smith. “You quickly restored these vital systems, which allowed these two ships to sail on time.

Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ESXARG) ships USS Essex (LHD 2) and USS Juneau (LPD 10) arrived in Busan and USS Tortuga (LSD 46) pulled into Chinhae on April 4 for scheduled port visits following the conclusion of Foal Eagle (FE) 2007. Sailors of the ESXARG and embarked Marines and Sailors of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) will have the opportunity to tour the Republic of Korea (ROK) and to participate in a community service project along with a variety of joint activities with the Essex's sister ship, the ROK Navy’s Yang Man Chun. “The Sailors and Marines of the ARG-MEU team have worked extremely hard in completing the mission of FE,” said Capt. Anthony J. Pachuta, Amphibious Squadron (PHIBRON) 11 commodore and ESXARG task group commander.

U.S. Sailors and Marines expressed heartfelt good-byes to their Republic of Korea (ROK) counterparts who disembarked ships of the Sasebo, Japan-based Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ESXARG) on April 1. The ARG-wide off-load came at the conclusion of Foal Eagle '07, the annual joint/combined exercise meant to improve interoperability and combat readiness between U.S. and ROK forces and build on the long-standing alliance between the United States and the Republic of Korea. The exercise culminated in a combined amphibious landing March 29, which was a testament to the two forces' interoperability in the Foal Eagle Amphibious Task Force (FE-ATF). The landing displayed the flexibility of the 7th Fleet's amphibious ships USS Essex (LHD 2), USS Tortuga (LSD 46) and USS Juneau (LPD 10).

Essex Amphibious Ready Group and embarked elements of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit arrived in the Republic of Korea (ROK) on March 5 to conduct Reception Staging Onward-Movement and Integration and Foal Eagle 2007 (RSOI/FE 07), an exercise which will run through the end of March. RSOI/FE is one of two annual command post exercises held by U.S. Forces Korea and conducted with the ROK armed forces. RSOI/FE 07 is designed to demonstrate U.S. resolve to support the ROK while improving overall readiness. RSOI focuses on initial operational flow of deployed forces to Korean Theater of Operations: receiving military units in Korea (reception)…