Das Boot

[wobblywalrus]

The Marines from Camp Pendleton conduct joint exercises with allies all around the Pacific.  Werner was in training with soldiers from Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Malaysia, and the French Foreign Legion in Djibouti during this cruise.  His company has four platoons with three made up of riflemen and one weapons platoon.  He is in the weapons platoon as a heavy machine gunner like his brother Johann.  His other brother, Josef, is a heavy machine gunner who rides in the armored support vehicles.  Josef says "Why walk when you can ride?"  Smart kid, he is.

The armed forces are slowly modernizing when they get the money.  These 60mm mortars are relatively new.  They are effective when the enemy is behind things and out of the reach of normal rifles, etc.  The mortar rounds go high up in the air and come down at almost a vertical angle.  The newer weapons are lighter than the old ones.  This is good.  These soldiers carry a lot of stuff and any weight savings makes their life easier.  Werner is showing me how to fire one of them in the photo.

 

[wobblywalrus]

It is Marine Day on the ship.  All of the weapons are brought out and there are demonstrations.  We civilians did not shoot anything.  Rose was more lucky.  She shot a 50 cal machine gun a few years ago.

The light machine gun shoots standard 7.65 caliber NATO ammo.  It is for close in support.  It and the gunners present a low profile to the enemy and they are easier to hide and harder for them to hit.

The heavy machine gun is a 50 caliber model.  It is practically unchanged since WWII.  It is a good design that does the job.  No need to replace it.  The marines have a lot of good things to say about it.

Some of you might remember a little kid who set a record in the MPS175P class back when production engines were allowed in modified partial streamliners.  That is Werner and he is showing me the weapons.  Right after he set the record I took the engine apart and did all sorts of work on it like a big bore kit, hot cam, etc.  The kid grew about a foot during the months when I was doing this and he no longer fit the bike.  Then he figured out how to ride girls and lost interest in land speed.  Now he is maturing and diversifying his interests.  Now he is into hot rods, girls, and bikes.  It makes a father proud. 

[manta22]

WW;

That BMG (Browning Machine Gun) M2 ("Ma Deuce") is a classic design. Accurate, long range, and hard- hitting. It will be around long after we are all gone.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[fordboy628]

That Browning M2 is mostly unchanged since I believe, 1921, first year of manufacturing.

It has already outlived numerous competitive designs.

[wobblywalrus]

If you want, I can post some more photos of the other weapons they use.  I do not know what they are.

One night, after about a week on the tub, we report to formation and are told to load all of our gear except what we sleep in onto the passage to the well deck.  It is in the photo.  The turntable is in the background and there is another passage down to the well deck.  We are also told to police up our quarters and to report for muster early and to get through the mess early, too.  This means only one thing.  Time to disembark.

We are busy and we clean up the rathole where we live.  Gear is moved down to the passage.  A restless night.  Up at 5, we head to the chow hall and scarf down some unidentified substance along with pancakes and eggs.  It is time to head down to the deck.  Right when I come out of the light lock into the day, someone yells "The boobs!  Its Pendleton!"  That crass anatomical reference is to the cooling towers at the San Onofre nuke plant.  Camp Pendleton and Oceanside are on the horizon.  The ship cannot dock there.  We depart in an amphibious landing.  There is a legion of well equipped wives, hookers, and girlfriends across the water.  We are prepared to invade and engage. 

   

[wobblywalrus]

The ship has a tailgate on it like a pickup truck.  It is lowered so the landing craft can exit and enter.  The problem is the gate is above the water when it is open and the well deck where the landing craft are is dry.  There are ballast tanks on the aft end of the ship.  They are normally filled with air.  They are flooded with water, the ship loses buoyancy in the aft, and the back end settles down into the water.  The well deck floods and the landing craft float out.

The landing craft require several feet of water depth to float and leave.  The little amphibious assault vehicles require very little water depth to depart.  They are stowed toward the front of the well deck because of this.  The front does not submerge as deep as the rear.

A water barrier is erected to keep the front half of the well deck dry while the landing craft are being floated.  This is a big operation and I could not be on both sides at the same time.  The lower pictures are from the night before we depart and the upper pictures are from the day we leave.

First, panels on the sides of the well deck are lifted to a horizontal position.  Second, a line is attached to the barrier.  Next the barrier is pulled up.

[wobblywalrus]

The barrier is up.  The operation is done by these two big cranes.  This is very time consuming.  These ships are like horses or cows giving birth.  They are still and vulnerable when they drop their loads.  The beachhead needs to be secure before the ships unload.  There is air cover, anti submarine measures in place, and the surrounding area is pulverized so there is no enemy alive to shoot at the ships. 

[manta22]

WW;

"...and the surrounding area is pulverized so there is no enemy alive to shoot at the ships."

Theoretically, at least. That's what they thought before landing on Iwo Jima. Dug in troops are hard to dislodge by artillery or air strikes. As soon as the artillery lets up to allow the beach landing the enemy pop out of their holes like prairie dogs.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[wobblywalrus]

Neil, I wonder why they got rid of the battleships.  Those guys are perfect for providing covering fire for landings.

The first wave to hit the beach are the vehicles.  There are all sorts ranging from funky dozers to beauties like Chiquita.  This line of trucks is ready to go.  The green ones are transplants from the European theatre and the sand colored ones are from the dez wars.  The most common vehicles are Humvees.  A standard one is in the background.  They are adapted to warfare and most have turrets with cannons and machine guns. These things are so Mickey Mouse it is scary.  There are all sorts of open gaps around the turret.  My sons say they are a bad deal in cities where they take fire from all directions.  Hopefully they will be replaced with something better soon.       

[wobblywalrus]

The landing craft are loaded and ready to go.  It is noisy and smoky.  All sorts of yelling, engines running, chains clanking against metal, etc.  The stern is lowered into the water.  The water comes up and it splashes onto the barrier.  The craft float out of the ship.  The marines are happy to go.  The navy is happy to see them go.  A festive atmosphere for all. 

[wobblywalrus]

All of this makes sense when you consider that this nation fights its wars everywhere besides its own territory.  That is unusual.

[manta22]

Let's hope it stays that way, WW.

That must have been a really interesting experience to be part of that operation.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[wobblywalrus]

We go up topside.  The San Diego is with us now.  It has been behind us the entire trip and out of sight.  It left Hawaii a day or two after we did.  It is a much more modern ship and it is the third ship in the three ship amphibious assault group.

The navy seals are on another ship and they pass by close to us when they head for the beach.

One of the other ships has this hovercraft. 

[wobblywalrus]

The stern is raised and the barrier is lowered.  It is time for the amphibious assault vehicles to leave.  They carry the marines to the beach when the first wave leaves in an assault.  Lots of soldiers fit inside.  This picture shoes the top with an open hatch.  There is a turret on the vehicle with a machine gun or cannon.  This next picture shows the side.  I am standing near it to give an idea of its size.  They are lined up on the well deck and ready to go. 

[wobblywalrus]

Off they go.  The things almost go entirely underwater when they drop off the back of the ship.  My son says it is really scary.  They bob up and head towards shore.  All of them are out and it is our time to go.  Walking down the same gang plank I walked up was how I figured I would leave the ship when this trip started.  What is happening now is not anticipated.