MSD 71 Completes Tour Aboard Oil Platforms
Mobile Security Detachment (MSD) 71 concluded a successful six-month deployment here Oct. 1, in which it provided security for Iraq’s Al Basrah (ABOT) and Khawr Al Amaya (KAAOT) oil terminals. The Guam-based Sailors, who are part of Combined Task Force (CTF) 158, worked closely with the Iraqi marines, also stationed aboard the oil terminals, to secure the waters surrounding the oil platforms. MSD 71 Sailors provide Iraqi marines with close-in point defense operations training and other effective security techniques. This intensive training is designed to train the Iraqis to eventually protect the oil platforms and territorial waters without oversight or support from coalition forces.
MSD 71 Supports Maritime Security Operations
Forward deployed Sailors attached to Mobile Security Detachment (MSD) 71 are currently deployed to Iraq’s two critical oil platforms, the Al Basrah (ABOT) and Khawr Al Amaya (KAAOT) oil terminals, conducting maritime security operations (MSO). As a part of Commander, Task Force (CTF) 158, MSD 71, based in Guam, arrived on station April 9 to train and work alongside Iraqi marines in point defense operations of the oil terminals. “We act in a Military Training Team mode and oversee their day-to-day operations to ensure that they’re securing the platforms in accordance with the procedures established for the inner defense layer of the terminals,” said Lt. Cmdr. Kenneth Miller, MSD 71 officer in charge.
