USS BONHOMME RICHARD, At Sea -- Deep within the humid bowels of U.S. Navy Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6), a force simmers.
Below the well deck, peppered among Humvees and boxes of meals ready to eat, U.S. Marines with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, conducted interoperability training with coalition forces as part of the Rim of the Pacific 2010 exercise July 12.
“Training together allows our new private first classes and lance corporals to learn how to interact with our coalition partners,” said Staff Sgt. Daniel Soto, a platoon sergeant with Company E, 2/3. “Teaching them the basics allows even the regular riflemen to become teachers.”
Service members from Australia, Malaysia and Tonga joined the 2/3 Marines to comprise a portion of Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force 3’s ground combat element.
“Working with the Marines is excellent because of the experience they bring to training,” said Lt. Andrew Harrison, a platoon commander with Company B, 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment. “It helps us to start thinking about the challenges of different communication and tactics.”
Harrison, a native of Townsville, Queensland, Australia, said the interoperability training has brought the Australian soldiers out of their bubble, and once comparisons are made, it “helps us realize we’re not the only ones with rigorous physical training and similar points of view.”
Labeling the Marines “professional, disciplined and experienced,” Harrison said they’ve been successful in developing and implementing training programs for the coalition force.
Prior to embarking on the ship, the Company E Marines led the force in battle sight zero exercises and enhanced marksmanship training on Marine Corps Base Hawaii.
“The integration of coalition forces has allowed us to gain a new perspective, see different weapons systems and glean from one another’s knowledge,” said 1st Lt. Thomas Carpenter, a platoon commander with Company E, 2/3.
As the forces embarked on the USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6), the pace didn’t slow down. Onboard the ship, the 2/3 Marines coordinated training events to advance the ground combat element’s skills, ranging from close quarters combat and military operations in urban terrain training to combat lifesaver classes.
Shrouded by the darkness of a space below the ship’s well deck, tightly stacked fire teams crept stealthily through a dank maze of narrow hallways, executing fire and movement drills under the watchful eyes of their coalition brothers. Bordering between annoying and uncomfortable, the space’s humidity drenched the coalition forces with sweat, leaving a musky, pungent odor drifting through the air.
During the same evolution, the Marines shared procedures for bounding across danger areas, clearing rooms and safely taking control of buildings in preparation for upcoming live fire range exercises at Pohakuloa Training Area, Hawaii.
“We’re constantly changing things up to keep them on their toes and help prepare them for real life situations,” said Soto, of New York City, N.Y.
Between training events, the coalition forces built rapport by practicing Marine Corps Martial Arts Program techniques. “We’ve done some ground fighting with the Aussies and Tongans and they’re very enthusiastic about it,” said Kalamazoo, Mich., native Pfc. Alexander Kreg, a team leader with Company E, 2/3.
This cohesion and rapport has followed them outside training hours. Since the coalition forces share a berthing area on the ship, they’ve mixed together, playing spades, Monopoly and even participating in a dodgeball tournament, Soto said.
While the interaction between service members from different nations doesn’t come without a challenge, it provides invaluable mutual learning and a stronger coalition relationship.
“Overcoming language barriers and learning to be patient even if we don’t understand each other right away has been a challenge, but it helps you become more rounded as a Marine,” Kreg said. “Working together and integrating each other’s tactics has been a really good experience.”