Another great and action-packed day.
After our breakfast at Hurlburt Field, we departed aboard our C-17 southbound to Miami. We arrived at the Coast Guard Air Station around lunchtime, where we had a lunch briefing led by Captain Joe Kimball. We learned that the Coast Guard is responsible for protecting the maritime economy, protecting the maritime borders and saving those in peril. What struck me the most was just how much they were responsible for with a relatively low (versus other services) force of 40,000. Impressive work. Their most recent "bust" came less than a week ago when aircraft and ships cooperated to stop a boat that contained approximately 200 kilograms of cocaine.
To put that in perspective, in 2011, all land law enforcement agencies in the continental U.S. confiscated 20,000 kilos. So, in one day’s work, the Coast Guard did 10% of what all land law enforcement combined did last year. I had no idea (until today) not only how hard they work, but how good they are at keeping illegal drugs and paraphernalia out of our country.
After our lunch briefing with the Coast Guardsmen, we toured the facilities. Similar to the Air Force, the equipment and personnel were exceptional. We were able to handle all of the firearms used by the Coast Guard. They are well equipped to say the least! From there, we went on to a tour of the aircraft. The helicopters used to perform water rescue are actually much smaller than I would have imagined. The reason is so that they are able to maneuver the aircraft to handle any and all types of rescue missions.
We then took a half-hour bus ride further south to a port near Downtown Miami. Once we arrived, we immediately boarded the 154-foot WPC-1101. This type of ship is commonly referred to as a “Cutter.” This particular ship, USCGC Bernard C. Webber, was named after the man who executed one of the greatest search and rescue missions in the history of the service. Under a beautiful cloudless sky in 82-degree weather - sorry, I had to get that in :) - we sailed for over two hours. During the time at sea, we were able to tour the enormous ship and see the "behind the scenes" efforts. In addition, the back of the ship includes a smaller rescue type of boat that launches in the rear. It seats eight people, and we all had the chance to take a quick ride. It was a blast!
Toward the end of our two hours on the Cutter, the Coast Guard performed a water rescue effort from the exact helicopter I toured only hours earlier. It's difficult to put into words how stressful it must be to be suspended from the rescue cable hundreds of feet in the air as you prepare to save your target. Brave men and women. Once we docked, we got our "chow" for the evening. Meals are often referred to as chow in the military. After chow, it was back on the bus and to the airport. Our day would conclude elsewhere after our late flight.
Tomorrow is "Marines Day" and is expected to be our most physically grueling one yet. And they made sure we have plenty of time to experience it ... wake-up call is at 4:45 a.m. Yikes! I'll be posting more tomorrow and I hope to have time to talk a bit about some of the extraordinary people who are a part of this JCOC 83 class. It is an extremely accomplished group of professionals that come from all walks of life. We even have someone I'm sure many of you TV show fans will recognize! I'd like to give you a hint, but I'd rather ask her tomorrow if she's comfortable taking a picture and posting it on here. She's super cool, so I'm sure she'll say yes.
But for now, goodnight.
- MLR
After our breakfast at Hurlburt Field, we departed aboard our C-17 southbound to Miami. We arrived at the Coast Guard Air Station around lunchtime, where we had a lunch briefing led by Captain Joe Kimball. We learned that the Coast Guard is responsible for protecting the maritime economy, protecting the maritime borders and saving those in peril. What struck me the most was just how much they were responsible for with a relatively low (versus other services) force of 40,000. Impressive work. Their most recent "bust" came less than a week ago when aircraft and ships cooperated to stop a boat that contained approximately 200 kilograms of cocaine.
To put that in perspective, in 2011, all land law enforcement agencies in the continental U.S. confiscated 20,000 kilos. So, in one day’s work, the Coast Guard did 10% of what all land law enforcement combined did last year. I had no idea (until today) not only how hard they work, but how good they are at keeping illegal drugs and paraphernalia out of our country.
After our lunch briefing with the Coast Guardsmen, we toured the facilities. Similar to the Air Force, the equipment and personnel were exceptional. We were able to handle all of the firearms used by the Coast Guard. They are well equipped to say the least! From there, we went on to a tour of the aircraft. The helicopters used to perform water rescue are actually much smaller than I would have imagined. The reason is so that they are able to maneuver the aircraft to handle any and all types of rescue missions.
We then took a half-hour bus ride further south to a port near Downtown Miami. Once we arrived, we immediately boarded the 154-foot WPC-1101. This type of ship is commonly referred to as a “Cutter.” This particular ship, USCGC Bernard C. Webber, was named after the man who executed one of the greatest search and rescue missions in the history of the service. Under a beautiful cloudless sky in 82-degree weather - sorry, I had to get that in :) - we sailed for over two hours. During the time at sea, we were able to tour the enormous ship and see the "behind the scenes" efforts. In addition, the back of the ship includes a smaller rescue type of boat that launches in the rear. It seats eight people, and we all had the chance to take a quick ride. It was a blast!
Toward the end of our two hours on the Cutter, the Coast Guard performed a water rescue effort from the exact helicopter I toured only hours earlier. It's difficult to put into words how stressful it must be to be suspended from the rescue cable hundreds of feet in the air as you prepare to save your target. Brave men and women. Once we docked, we got our "chow" for the evening. Meals are often referred to as chow in the military. After chow, it was back on the bus and to the airport. Our day would conclude elsewhere after our late flight.
Tomorrow is "Marines Day" and is expected to be our most physically grueling one yet. And they made sure we have plenty of time to experience it ... wake-up call is at 4:45 a.m. Yikes! I'll be posting more tomorrow and I hope to have time to talk a bit about some of the extraordinary people who are a part of this JCOC 83 class. It is an extremely accomplished group of professionals that come from all walks of life. We even have someone I'm sure many of you TV show fans will recognize! I'd like to give you a hint, but I'd rather ask her tomorrow if she's comfortable taking a picture and posting it on here. She's super cool, so I'm sure she'll say yes.
But for now, goodnight.
- MLR
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Rescue helicopter |
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| Getting to tour the helicopter |
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Coast Guard ammunition |
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| One of the rescue boats |
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| The "Cutter" |
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Water rescue mission right outside downtown Miami |
