Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms

The Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC), also known as 29 Palms, is the largest United States Marine Corps base. It was a census-designated place (CDP) officially known as Twentynine Palms Base located adjacent to the city of Twentynine Palms in southern San Bernardino County, California. As of the 2000 census, the base had a total population of 8,413. The zip code of the base is 92278; base housing's zip code is 92277. The base covers a total area of 596,288 acres (931.7 sq mi).
The CDP was discontinued prior to the 2010 census.
History.
From 1942 through July 1944, during World War II, the airfield at Twentynine Palms was utilized by the U.S. Army Air Force for primary flight training. What is now the "Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center", was taken over by the Eleventh Naval District, headquartered in San Diego, as Naval Auxiliary Air Station Twentynine Palms, in July 1944. After the war its future was uncertain. Then, on August 20, 1952, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton Headquarters issued Post Order 343 creating the Marine Corps Training Center, Twentynine Palms.
The United States was embroiled in the Korean War. As the need for live-fire training grew along with the swelling ranks, it became obvious that more ranges were needed. Pendleton's Marines looked northward, and happened upon the abandoned Condor Field, a World War II Army and Navy glider base located in the vicinity of what is now mainside.
The base was redesignated on February 6, 1953 as Marine Corps Training Center, Twentynine Palms. By February 1, 1957, it grew to base status and was again redesignated as Marine Corps Base, Twentynine Palms, Calif.
Only 70 Marines comprised the detachment at the Center. Manned by Marines from Camp Pendleton, its primary mission was to prepare the new base for the arrival of permanent personnel. By mid-December, 1952, a fresh 3rd Marine Division, with assistance from the 12th Marine Regiment, conducted the first large-scale, live-fire field exercise aboard the new base. The exercise gave Marines a glimpse of the facility's potential and foreshadowed the large-scale combined arms exercises for which the base is now known.
In 1976, under the command of Brigadier General Ernest R. Reid, Jr., work began to add an expeditionary airfield to the base's growing infrastructure. When the first C-5 Galaxy landed in August 1978, it was apparent that the air-ground capability of the base was complete. Following completion of the expeditionary airfield, its name was changed to Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Training Center on October 1, 1978, and changed yet once more to Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) on February 16, 1979. It was also during this time that plans for the Combined Arms Exercises were conceived. Supplanting an earlier exercise known as Desert Palm Tree, the new CAXs were remarkable in two respects: the practice of combined arms, and live-fire and movement during the exercises were unprecedented in scale. Just as noteworthy was the creation of a Tactical Exercise Control Center with the primary purpose of controlling, instructing and critiquing the exercises. In the words of base historian, Col. Verle E. Ludwig, USMC (Ret.), "Twentynine Palms was to be a permanent 'combined-arms exercise college' for all of the Marine Corps."
On October 1, 2000, after 21 years as MCAGCC, the command was redesignated as Marine Air Ground Task Force Training Command, Twentynine Palms, California. This redesignation accompanied a change in policy that placed MAGTF Training Command under the auspices of Training and Education Command, Headquarters Marine Corps, MCCDC, Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. This arrangement simplifies what was occasionally a complicated chain of command. The expeditionary airfield and surrounding spartan accommodations for visiting units was nicknamed "Camp Wilson".
The base is currently home to one of the largest military training areas in the nation. The program known as Mojave Viper has become the model of pre-Operation Iraqi Freedom deployment training. The majority of units in the Marine Corps will undergo a month at Mojave Viper before deploying to Iraq or a mixed training venue using the Mountain Warfare Training Center (south of Lake Tahoe) for Afghanistan. Live fire exercises, artillery, tank, and close air support training are used for training, in addition to the sprawling "Combat Town," a fabricated Middle Eastern village, complete with a mosque, native role-players, an "IED Alley," and other immersive touches.
In August 2008, the Marine Corps submitted a land withdrawal application to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for approximately contiguous to base as part of an ongoing study by the Marine Corps for possible base expansion, along with the establishment of corresponding special-use airspace, necessary to train a Marine Expeditionary Brigade at the Combat Center.
Geography.
Twentynine Palms Base is located within the Morongo Basin and the High Desert region of the Mojave Desert, in Southern California.
MCAGCC Twentynine Palms is approximately 98 miles from the Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow, which is located in the city of Barstow, California. It is also approximately 111 miles from the Barstow-Daggett Airport located in Daggett, California.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the base has a total area of 1.4 mi2 (3.7 km2). This area is all land with none covered by water. This area covers only the main cantonment, which includes the base housing; the entire installation is far larger, with 931.7 mi2 (2,413.2 km2) of surface area, all land. There was a resident population of 14,090 on this territory as of the 2000 census.
The terrain is consistent, with steeply sloped mountains and flat valleys running northwest–southeast, with elevations ranging from 1,800 to above sea level. The training area is also characterized with ancient lava flows, as well as dry lake beds and arroyos (or wadis) that fill quickly during rain, presenting the danger of powerful floods and washouts that can move armored vehicles. Many abandoned mines dot the terrain, as well as unexploded ordnance and shrapnel, making unauthorized travel in the training areas dangerous.
The climate is described best as arid and upland desert. Summer temperatures can peak at 120 °F and bottom at 15 °F in the winter, with an annual average of 67 °F. Precipitation averages to four inches (102 mm) annually, most often in the fall and winter months. Weather is generally clear and sunny days, with low humidity.
Demographics.
As of the census of 2000, there were 8,413 people, 912 households, and 904 families residing on the base. The population density was 2,287.5/km2 (5,935.8/mi2). There were 1,006 housing units at an average density of 273.5/km2 (709.8/mi2). The racial makeup of the base was 70.3% White, 10.4% African American, 1.4% Native American, 3.1% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 9.5% from other races, and 5.1% from two or more races. 19.6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 912 households, out of which 73.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 94.5% were married couples living together, 3.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 0.8% were non-families. 0.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and <0.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.4 and the average family size was 3.4.
The age distribution of the base is: 15.4% under the age of 18, 67.0% from 18 to 24, 16.8% from 25 to 44, 0.7% from 45 to 64, and <0.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 21 years. For every 100 females, there were 404.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 596.3 males. These statistics were consistent with the area's military status.
The median income for a household on the base was $29,500, and the median income for a family was $29,594. Males had a median income of $14,111 versus $17,014 for females. The per capita income for the base was $12,615. 12.1% of the population and 11.9% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 14.0% of those under the age of 18 and 0.0% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Government.
In the California State Legislature, Twentynine Palms Base is in , and in .
In the United States House of Representatives, Twentynine Palms Base is in the .
In popular culture.
A futuristic version of the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center is featured at the start of the movie "Doom".
When the hit TV show "Home Improvement" was about to be sold into syndication, the producers decided to kick off the syndicated run with a brand new episode not shown on prime time. Much of that episode was taped in 1995 at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms. The episode, titled "Tanks for the Memories", featured Tim and Jill racing tanks across the desert base.
In season 4 episode 32 of "The Andy Griffith Show", the Camp Wilson Marine Base was used throughout the episode, from when the character "Gomer Pyle" joined the Marines.
It was featured in Terminal Lance comic #209; "All Your Base: 29 Palms" describing the horrible conditions of the base, saying it smelled of "sweaty shit", a reference to the open pond from the base waste water treatment facility. It is known to the local population as "Lake Bandini", after a local fertilizer company of the same name.
In the 1996 film "Independence Day", additional fighters are sent from 29 Palms, presumably from the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center.
The base is also known in military and veteran communities by the nickname "29 Stumps" after its desert location and lack of things to do in the general area, especially in earlier decades.
The area is mentioned in Robert Plant's song "29 Palms".


Flag of the United States Marine Corps

The flag of the United States Marine Corps (also known as the standard or battle color) is the flag used to represent the U.S. Marine Corps, as well as its subsidiary units and formations.
Design.
Official battle color of the U.S. Marine Corps.
The official flag is scarlet with the Corps emblem in gray and gold. It was adopted on 18 January 1939, although Marine Corps Order 4 had established scarlet and gold as the official colors of the Corps as early as 1925. The indoor/parade version is bordered by a gold fringe while the outdoor version is plain. It measures on the hoist and on the fly. In addition to the multi-colored battle streamers (measuring by wide) affixed to the top of the staff, the staff itself is covered with sterling silver bands engraved with the names of conflicts in which the Corps has been engaged.
History.
Very little information is available regarding the flags carried by early American marines, although indications are that the Grand Union Flag was carried ashore by the battalion led by Captain Samuel Nicholas on New Providence Island, 3 March 1776. It is quite possible that the Gadsden flag was also carried on this expedition.
The standard carried by the Marines during the 1830s and 1840s consisted of a white field with gold fringe, and bore an elaborate design of an anchor and eagle in the center. Prior to the Mexican–American War, this flag bore the legend "To the Shores of Tripoli" across the top. Shortly after the war, the legend was revised to read: "From Tripoli to the Halls of the Montezumas."
During the Mexican and Civil Wars, Marines in the field apparently carried a flag similar to the national flag, consisting of red and white stripes and a union. The union, however, contained an eagle perched on a shield of the United States and a half-wreath beneath the shield, with 29 stars encircling the entire design. Beginning in 1876, Marines carried the national colors (the Stars and Stripes) with "U.S. Marine Corps" embroidered in yellow on the middle red stripe.
At the time of the Vera Cruz landing in 1914, a more distinctive standard was carried by Marines. The design consisted of a blue field with a laurel wreath encircling the Marine Corps emblem in the center. A scarlet ribbon above the emblem carried the words "U.S. Marine Corps," while another scarlet ribbon below the emblem carried the motto "Semper Fidelis."
Orders were issued on 2 April 1921 which directed all national colors be manufactured without the yellow fringe and without the words "U.S. Marine Corps" embroidered on the red stripe. This was followed by an order dated 14 March 1922, retiring from use all national colors still in use with yellow fringe or wording on the flag. Following World War I, the Army practice of attaching silver bands carrying inscriptions enumerating specific decorations and battles was adopted. This practice was discontinued on 23 January 1961.
Marine Corps Order No. 4 of 18 April 1925 designated gold and scarlet as the official colors of the U.S. Marine Corps. These colors, however, were not reflected in the official Marine Corps standard until 18 January 1939, when a new design incorporating the new colors was approved. The design was essentially that of today's Marine Corps standard.
For a brief time following World War I, the inscribing of battle honors directly on the colors of a unit was in practice, but realization that a multiplicity of honors and the limited space on the colors made the system impractical, and the procedure was discontinued. On 29 July 1936, a Marine Corps Board recommended that the Army system of attaching streamers to the staff of the organizational colors be adopted. Such a system was finally authorized by Marine Corps Order No. 157, dated 3 November 1939, and is currently in practice. Devices are embroidered onto the streamer to denote special recognition or repeat awards. Unlike the Army and Air Force flags, only a single streamer is utilized for a single campaign, with the exception of those streamers that require more than eight devices, the maximum any one streamer may hold. Devices are only authorized for campaigns participated in the 20th and 21st centuries.
Color Sergeant.
The official battle color of the Corps is maintained by Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C. ("8th and I"), and carried by the Color Sergeant of the Marine Corps. The position of the Color Sergeant was first officially designated in 1965 and was first held by Gunnery Sgt. Shelton L. Eakin. The billet is a two-year tour open to all Sergeants; the only caveat being that the applicant must be at least tall, as outlined by the drill manual of the United States Marine Corp. and pass a rigorous White House security check. The Color Sergeant of the Marine Corps traditionally carries the Flag of the President of the United States at state dinners and other official functions, and leads the color guard at various parades and ceremonies.
Streamers.
The following streamers are authorized, in order of precedence:
Organizational Battle Colors.
Each unit in the Corps of battalion-size or larger also hold an organizational color (which makes up the unit's colors along with the national flag). It is usually identical to the Marine Corps battle color, though the scroll will have the unit's name instead of "United States Marine Corps". It will also bear the streamers authorized to the unit, or scarlet and gold tassels if none are authorized.
Each Corps unit has a designated color guard, led by a color sergeant. He is entrusted with the care of the unit colors, which are a symbol of the United States, the Marine Corps, and the commander him/herself. The organizational colors are often passed as part of change of command ceremonies to symbolize the transfer of office. When not in use as part of a parade or ceremony, the colors are traditionally kept in the commander's office.
Guidons.
A Marine guidon is always rectangular, , with a scarlet field and gold lettering, and an Eagle, Globe, and Anchor centered.
Fleet Marine Forces units have "FMF" emblazoned above an Eagle, Globe, and Anchor (EGA), reserve units display "USMCR", and all others have "USMC". The regimental level numeral will be displayed in the lower left corner, unless a higher or lower command numeral provides better identification (for example, a battalion's headquarters company would display that battalion's numeral instead of the regiment). The company-level designation letter, abbreviated title, or number will be in the lower right corner.
No additional attachments are authorized, including streamers, bands, or the like. Some units incorporate additional banners or mascots into unofficial guidons.
Guidons are used in the same manner as colors for a company- or platoon-sized unit. Much like the colors, the guidon represents the unit commander. It is entrusted to the unit guide for parades and ceremonies, and displayed in or near the commander's office when he or she is present.
Guidons are also used in recruit training to identify individual platoons. First and second phase platoons have a gold background with their four-digit platoon number in scarlet, while third phase platoons have a scarlet background with gold lettering and trim. The guidon is used as an aid to instilling unit identity and pride, representing the platoon. Some drill instructors will test that pride by attempting to dishonor the guidon and expecting the recruits to intervene. Also, the recruit assigned to carry it, the guide, is treated as the most senior recruit of the platoon, and uses the guidon to marks the line of advance in close order drill.
Personal flags.
General-grade officers and the Commandant of the Marine Corps are authorized a personal flag, which displays their rank insignia. A red background with white stars are used, while the Commandant also has a grey and gold Eagle, Globe, and Anchor. These flags are often used to mark a command headquarters in garrison, as well as a symbol for the general himself. Much like a guidon, they are displayed when the general is present, and stowed when not; visiting officers and officials often have their personal flags displayed as a courtesy.
Shared aspects.
All U.S. Marine flags share a similar wooden staff and silver spearhead and ferrule. The base of the spearhead is used to support streamers or tassels if authorized. Older organizational colors may also have silver bands, awarded for participation in a battle or campaign, though the practice has been discontinued for all but the Corp's main battle colors.
A color mounted on a vehicle of some type is referred to as a standard. When the national flag is flown from a ship, it is referred to as the national ensign.


Red Serge

The Red Serge refers to the jacket of the dress uniform of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. It consists of a scarlet British-style military pattern tunic, complete with a high-neck collar and blue breeches with yellow stripe identifying a cavalry history.
Constables and non-commissioned officers.
Constables (Cst) and non-commissioned officers (NCOs) wear the red serge tunic with blue gorget patches on their collars and epaulettes of navy blue. Metal collar dogs of the RCMP badge are worn on the neck. Constables and NCOs wear embroidered firearms qualification badges on the bottom of their left sleeve, and their embroidered specialist trade badge on the right sleeve. If a second specialist badge is earned, the least current is worn below the firearms qualification badges. Embroidered NCO rank badges of corporal (Cpl), and sergeant (Sgt) are worn on the right sleeve below the specialist trade badge (if any). Staff sergeant (S/Sgt), sergeant major (S/Maj), and staff sergeant major (S/S/Maj) are worn on the bottom of the right sleeve. With RCMP badges, no badge is worn directly above a badge containing a crown. Service stars, each designating 5 years of service, are worn on the left sleeve.
In "review order," the riding breeches (jodhpurs) are "midnight blue" (virtually black) which bulge at the thigh in keeping with traditional cut with a yellow strapping (stripe) down the outside seam of each leg, and laced closed beneath the boots. The breeches are worn with braces. Finishing off the Red Serge are brown leather riding boots, known as high browns or Strathcona boots, with spurs, and a brown wide-brimmed felt campaign hat with a glass-flat brim. The ever-present side-arm, currently either a Smith & Wesson model 5946 or 3953, is carried in a brown leather holster on a brown Sam Browne belt. There is a brown leather pouch for carrying handcuffs and another for two spare pistol magazines. The Cst, Cpl, Sgt, and S/Sgt Sam Browne cross strap travels over the left shoulder. A S/Maj may have a whistle and chain on the cross strap. A white pistol lanyard is worn around the neck and connected to the side arm. "Review order" may be worn with "full" Sam Browne, or "stripped" Sam Browne where no lanyard, pistol, holster, or pouches are worn. Female RCMP members formerly wore a modified version of the Red Serge for review order without the high collar but now wear the same pattern of tunic as their male colleagues.
"Walking-out order" is worn for more formal occasions. Walking-out order consists of the red serge tunic, a blue and gold waist belt with brass buckle, stirrup overalls, pants known in RCMP slang as "banana pants", with congress boots and spurs.
Formerly, female RCMP members wore the same tunic and waist belt as their male counterparts, as well as a long skirt and black shoes. However, a 1990 an order in council stipulated that female members of the RCMP would wear the same Review Order uniform as male Mounties.
Commissioned officers.
Junior commissioned officers (inspectors and above) wear similar red serge tunics; however, their collars are solid blue as are their sleeve cuffs. Officers do not wear any qualification, specialist, or service badges on their tunics. Rank is worn in the British style of metal "pips" and "crowns" on the epaulettes. The yellow stripe on officers' breeches and males' overalls is finer material and wider than Cst and NCOs. Officers' "high brown" boots are different from the Cst and NCOs. Officers' Sam Brownes have D-rings for sword frogs, and the cross straps travel over the right shoulder.
Senior officers wear a metallic belt—not a leather Sam Browne—and gold-plated shoulder cords in full dress.
Officers have the option of wearing a campaign hat or forage cap with Red Serge.
The mess dress worn by commissioned officers has a scarlet cutaway jacket.
Prior to 1904, a white, topi-style of pith helmet was standard issue; however, plainsmen often preferred to ride wearing non-regulation cowboy hats and these subsequently became uniform issue in the form of the campaign hat.
An RCMP officer wearing the Red Serge is an internationally recognized Canadian icon.
The Red Serge is not worn as working dress when an officer is on normal duty, but is reserved for occasions such as civic ceremonies, musical rides, ceremonial parades, as a visual representative of the security force for government dignitaries, and during public relations—related special events such as school career days or guard duty at Parliament in Ottawa. Members also march in funerals for police officers wearing the traditional Red Serge.
The Red Serge is also worn by RCMP members during special personal events, such as the wedding ceremony of a fellow officer, where it is not uncommon for an entire detachment of a small community to wear the Red Serge as an honour guard for the bride and groom at their wedding ceremony. Usually, if the groom is a member, he will be married in his Red Serge, in lieu of civilian formal attire.
History.
The red serge was adopted as part of its standard uniform by the NWMP from its establishment in 1873. In its first form, it consisted of a loose-fitting "Norfolk jacket" supplied from Canadian Militia stocks. While comfortable and practical, the Norfolk jacket lacked smartness and it was replaced after 1876 by scarlet full-dress and undress tunics manufactured by British suppliers. An elaborate ceremonial tunic of hussar style was prescribed for officers but infrequently worn. Scarlet continued to be the base color for all occasions; partially to distinguish the new Canadian force from blue-clad US Army units and partially because of the significance of red coats in the British military culture inherited from the Militia.
The NWMP Dress Regulations of 1886 provided for a simpler officers' full dress based on that of British and Canadian dragoon regiments. The 1890 regulations authorized the adoption of white patrol jackets for summer wear and brown duck (khaki) for patrol duty. The red serge was by now sufficiently well-established to serve as an icon of the NWMP, though increasingly relegated to dress and garrison wear. Photographs, however, show red serge still being worn by individual constables on field duty into the early 1900s. A dark-blue, patrol "frock tunic", of the same design as the red serge, was adopted in 1904 as alternative wear for ordinary duties. A mixture of scarlet, blue, and brown tunics were worn, according to circumstances, until after 1920 when the red serge became a dress item, with brown tunics as a standard part of the normal work uniform. This remains the practice to the present day.
In popular culture.
The red serge is almost always used in depictions of Mounties in popular culture, such as Dudley Do-Right or Rose Marie (1936 film).
During one of his stints in the World Wrestling Federation, Jacques Rougeau wore a modified red serge outfit to play his character of "The Mountie"; however, due to protests by the RCMP, the WWF mentioned repeatedly during his matches that he was not a "true representative of the Mounties." Eventually litigation prevented Rougeau from appearing in Canada as The Mountie and the gimmick was dropped.
In the Canadian-produced series "Due South", produced from 1994 to 1999, the character Constable Benton Fraser of the RCMP wears the Red Serge on a normal basis. The character is a traditionalist who firmly believes in wearing that over the blue or brown uniforms, though he is seen wearing all three in the series.
In the Canadian-American produced TV drama series "When Calls the Heart", the character Constable Jack Thornton of the Royal Northwest Mounted Police is usually seen wearing a red serge.


USCGC Courageous

USCGC "Courageous" (WMEC-622) was a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter. She was built by the American Ship Building Company in Lorain, Ohio and launched on 18 March 1967. She commissioned on 19 April 1968. She was decommissioned 19 September 2001.
Initial deployment.
The "Courageous" was built at the American Shipyards in Lorain, Ohio and launched on 18 March 1967. She was delivered to the Coast Guard and commissioned on 19 April 1968. She was initially homeported in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and served there through 1972, conducting search and rescue and law enforcement patrols. On 10 September 1968 she towed the disabled sailboat "Ibex" 20 miles north of Bimini to Miami. On 6 October 1968 she medevaced a boy suffering from the bends from the F/V "M.M. Winter" off the coast of Florida. On 21 April 1969 crewmen boarded the German M/V "Helga Witt" following a request by the ship's commanding officer concerning armed men on board. The "Courageous" then escorted the German merchantman to San Juan.
On 29 through 30 April 1969 she assumed duty of on-scene commander following a fire on the British tanker "Mobile Apex", taking the blazing tanker in tow and took her out of Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. The cutter and crew were awarded the Coast Guard Unit Commendation "for exceptionally meritorious service during the period 29 April to 2 May 1969" for this action. From 11 to 28 July "Courageous" participated in BOMAX (Barbados Oceanographic and Meteorological Experiment), hosting Coast Guard cadets and scientists. The crew assisted scientists with assembling and launching devices for measuring ocean currents and temperatures. An article on this assignment was published in the August 1969 issue of Popular Science. On 7 August 1969 stood by the M/V "Pionyr" following its grounding until a commercial tug arrived on scene. On the 30th, "Courageous" assisted in a medevac from a sailboat 320 miles north of San Juan, Puerto Rico. On 12 October 1970 the cutter once again assisted in a medevac and then towed the F/V "Janice Elaine" to Miami. On 1 August 1971 "Courageous" seized the yacht "White Cloud" near Cuban waters and arrested two for aiding draft evaders.
On 23 December 1971 RCC Miami notified "Courageous" to undertake a rescue of the 26-foot S/V "Ian's Cradle" with 4 persons on board, during a severe gale, east of Fort Pierce. The sailing vessel and her crew had attempted to sail to Bimini in other than optimum weather conditions. By the time the request for assistance was broadcast, "Ian's Cradle" had been dismasted and had lost one person overboard and the remaining three, including an infant, were in mortal danger. The "Courageous" got underway and located the sailing vessel and after much trouble managed to secure a towline. Due to the worsening of the sea conditions, a helo was requested out of St. Petersburg, and the three survivors on "Ian's Cradle" were lifted off their vessel to safety. The "Ian's Cradle" sank ten minutes later. During this rescue, "Courageous" lost all of her helicopter nets, her long antenna, and sustained other damage.**
The "drugs war".
She changed homeports in late 1971 to Cape Canaveral. "Courageous" sustained a casualty when an elevator in the galley collapsed and killed SS3 Dean Renolds in 1973. On 21 December 1977 "Courageous" seized the vessel "Isla de Aruba" carry illegal drugs, marking the beginning of her duties on the "front lines of the drug war." On 18 March 1982 she seized the Cayman Island-flagged "Damocles" carrying 28 tons of marijuana. She changed homeports once again in 1982 to Key West. On 25 January 1984 she seized a work boat with 20 tons of marijuana on board. On 17 March 1984 "Courageous" seized another work boat with 20 tons of marijuana on board northwest of Providence Channel.
On 20 March 1984 a boarding team seized the F/V "Griffon" 75 miles east of Great Abaco Island carrying 30 pounds of marijuana. On 6 May 1984 her boarding team seized the M/V "Canta Dora" 14 mile north of New Providence Island carrying 10 tons of marijuana and on 25 June 1984 seized M/V "Henry I" 100 miles north of Yucatán Channel carrying 8.5 tons of marijuana. They again seized a small fishing vessel with 5 tons of marijuana on board near Rum Cay and on 18 August 1984 they seized P/C "Mayo" near Rum Cay with 5 tons of marijuana on board. On the same day her team seized the P/C "Miriam C" 65 miles northeast of Nassau carrying 15 tons of marijuana. On 24 August 1984 her crew took a break from law enforcement and rescued 10 from the M/V "Rio Teta", which the crew had scuttled to avoid being searched. "Courageous" began a new year by seizing the F/V "Black Stallion" 330 miles northwest of Puerto Rico carrying 10 tons of marijuana on 14 January 1985.
Refit.
In March 1987 she was decommissioned and entered Colonna's Shipyard in Norfolk, Virginia for her Major Maintenance Availability process (MMA). She received the following modifications and upgrades: improved habitability, improved stability by rearranging tank locations, replacement of all asbestos paneling, increased the berthing space, upgraded the flight deck and helicopter equipment, increased the amount of helicopter fuel carried, improved the evaporator, increased and upgraded the communications and electronics capacities, installed vertical exhaust stacks and associated ballast, and installed a smoke detection system and new fire-fighting equipment. "Courageous" was returned to the Coast Guard on 5 March 1990 in Portsmouth, Virginia. The cutter was then placed in commission "special status." Following an extensive onload of needed supplies, the crew completed a five-month engine overhaul in Portsmouth. During subsequent engine trials, a shaft alignment problem was discovered by the crew. A five-month drydocking at the Coast Guard Yard for shaft repairs was required. In addition to shaft repairs, a new steering motor was installed, both anchors were replaced, and a new computer system was installed in the cutter's combat information center. Having completed the repairs to the shaft alignment and undergoing extensive crew training and ready for sea preparations, "Courageous" arrived at her new homeport of Panama City, Florida, on 3 February 1991. She was formally recommissioned on 16 March 1991.
Migrant interdiction.
"Courageous" once again began performing her routine maritime law enforcement, search and rescue, and defense readiness patrols in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea. One of her commanding officers described her duties as follows:
On 8 September 2001, a Good Samaritan located a raft 25 miles south of Alligator Key, FL. USCGC Chincoteague (WPB-1320) arrived on scene and embarked nine Cuban migrants. The raft was destroyed as a hazard to navigation. The migrants were transferred to "Courageous" where Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) interviews were conducted. On 12 September, the nine migrants were transferred to the cutter and returned to Cuba.
On 3 September, Coast Guard Station Marathon intercepted nine Cuban migrants, 10 miles south of Sombrero Key Light. All nine migrants were transferred to cutter for further transfer to cutter "Courageous" for INS interviews. On 9 September, the nine migrants were returned to Cuba by cutter "Key Largo". On 3 September, a good Samaritan spotted two Cuban migrants on a raft, 30 miles south of Key West, FL. Cutter "Padre" embarked the migrants for further transfer to cutter "Courageous" for INS interviews. On 9 September, the two Cuban migrants were returned to Cuba by cutter .
Additionally, on 3 September, cutter "Courageous" intercepted two Cuban migrants on a raft, 40 miles south of Marathon, Florida. Cutter "Courageous" embarked the migrants where INS interviews were conducted. One of the migrants was returned to Cuba on 9 September, the remaining migrant was transferred to cutter "Nantucket" and returned to Cuba on 12 September. On 3 September, an Air Station Miami HU-25 aircraft spotted a 25-foot vessel with approximately 28 Cuban migrants on board. Cutter "Courageous" intercepted the raft, 39 miles southeast of Marathon, FL. All 28 Cuban migrants were taken aboard cutter "Courageous" where INS interviews were conducted. The raft was destroyed as a hazard to navigation. On 9 September cutter "Key Largo" returned all 28 migrants to Cuba.
On 5 September, cutter "Courageous" located a raft with six Cuban migrants, 10 miles north of Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas. On 7 September, the migrants were transferred to cutter and later transferred to Bahamian authorities in Freeport, Bahamas. On 5 September, cutter "Courageous" intercepted 19 Cuban migrants on a go-fast 11 miles north of Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas. Two of the migrants are suspected to be smugglers and were turned over to the U.S. Border Patrol. INS interviews were conducted on cutter "Courageous". On 12 September, the migrants were transferred to cutter "Nantucket" and returned to Cuba.
As of October 2001, a memo from the cutter noted that:
"Courageous" experienced her most challenging migrant mission on September 5, when she stopped a 30-ft speedboat 50 miles south of the Florida Keys, with the assistance of a Coast Guard HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter. The "Courageous" boarding team discovered that the "go-fast" was smuggling migrants from Cuba to South Florida, and had 17 migrants secreted into a small locker in the bow of the speedboat. Most of the Cubans were unconscious and near death from dehydration, and the crew of the "Courageous" quickly recovered all seventeen onboard where the ship's medical technicians quickly stabilized the most critical migrants. After subsequent INS interviews, the migrants were repatriated to Cuba one week later.
In addition to the migrant interdiction missions, "Courageous" was also the on-scene commander during the Coast Guard's search and rescue mission for a downed Cuban aircraft on September 19 and 20. The nine survivors, including three children, were rescued by the passing 580-foot Panamanian freighter "Chios Dream". "Courageous" embarked a medical technician on the merchant vessel in heavy seas to perform emergency medical care; after the evacuation of the most critical survivor by helicopter, the remaining survivors were transferred ashore for medical treatment in Key West.
The final two weeks of the deployment were spent at Naval Station, Mayport where the crew underwent an intense period of classroom training and practical underway exercises to hone their navigation, damage control, first aid, and seamanship skills."
She was decommissioned on 19 September 2001.
Sri Lankan service.
The United States Coast Guard donated "Courageous" to Sri Lanka on June 24, 2004 and a departure ceremony was held February 19, 2005. She is currently serving the Sri Lankan Navy as P621 "SLNS Samudura". The name means "sea" in Sinhalese.
Operations.
"Samudura" is tasked with deep sea patrolling both within the Sri Lankan territorial waters and in international waters to curb ongoing arms smuggling by the LTTE. In recent months "Samudura", along with other OPVs of the Sri Lankan Navy, has been able to successfully intercept several ships smuggling arms for the LTTE. In all these cases the ships were sunk when they attacked the naval vessels with mortars. "Samudura" also participated in the Cadex 2009 military training exercises with the Indian Navy after the war.
"Samudura", in her post-conflict operations, continues to serve the nation with policing and law enforcement duties in the maritime jurisdiction of the country. Apart from her traditional role the ship successfully completed a scientific study programme in liaison with Geological & Mine Bureau
of Sri Lanka in conjunction with Woods-hole Oceanographic Laboratory of USA. The ship celebrated her 7th anniversary in Trincomalee on 21 April 2012 with the participation of families of all her serving crew. The ship performed a major role in protecting the Sri Lankan waters from poaching in the northern waters by enforcing a strict vigil on the preservation of the marine environment and supporting sustainable fish-harvesting. At present the ship is attached to the Southern Naval Area to secure maritime interests in the Sri Lankan maritime jurisdiction. Her primary duties are to ensure the main Sea Lane of Communication (SLOC) that runs through the Sri Lankan maritime jurisdiction is safe for seafaring and policing the EEZ. The ship has intercepted several boat loads of illegal immigrants heading to Australia in violation of the country's immigration & emigration laws. In May 2020, it was deployed in the eastern Indian Ocean for search and rescue operations following the tropical cyclone Amfan.
Commanders.
The Commanding Officer of the CGC Couragous in 1991 was Capt. Bohner
The following Commanding Officer was LTJG. Santimanzano
The First Sri Lankan Captain on the vessel was Captain Sirimevan Ranasinghe WWV RWP
Subsequently, the ship has been Commanded by:


LORAN-C transmitter Seneca

The LORAN-C transmitter Seneca was the master station of the Northeastern United States LORAN-C Chain (GRI 9960) and the X-Ray secondary station of the Great Lakes Chain (GRI 8970). It was located within the Seneca Army Depot in Romulus, New York, south of Geneva. It used a 1000-kilowatt, 742-foot (226.2 m) guyed mast that was constructed in 1977 and dedicated on August 2, 1978. The station was operated by United States Coast Guard and was located on a 250-acre (1.0 km2) piece of land within the 10,587-acre (42.84 km2) facility. The transmitter was used to guide ships and aircraft up to 1,000 miles (1,600 km) away. It was the first LORAN station to use solid-state electronics versus vacuum tube components.
The station, was shut down for good on February 9, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. EST. The tower was dismantled shortly after decommissioning of the LORAN-C system and was stacked in pieces next to the transmitter building awaiting further disposition.


Engineering Installation

Engineering and Installation, better known as E&I, is a functionary of the United States Air Force that
provides the engineering and installation of telecommunications into permanent facilities. This includes
removal and relocation of old or outdated ground communication-electronics systems, and to provide
for emergency and programmed, mobile, on-site, maintenance and modification of these systems.
Engineering and Installation Missions deploy worldwide to fulfill their mission to engineer, install, remove, and relocate Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I) information systems and infrastructure such as antennas, cabling, radios, navigational aids, and meteorological equipment. E&I can be described as a corps of telecommunication engineers and the functional
intermediary between civil engineers and information technology professionals.
Engineering and Installation Squadrons fall under the Major Command of the Air Force Space Command.
There are currently 1 active duty E&I unit, 15 Air National Guard E&I squadrons, and 1 E&I team assigned to a combat support agency.


Air Force Satellite Control Facility

The United States Air Force's Air Force Satellite Control Facility (AFSCF) was a space command and control unit located at Onizuka AFB, California. It has the distinction of being heavily involved in the world's first reconnaissance satellite program, CORONA. Due to geological hazards (i.e. earthquakes), and the terrorism threat from its proximity to a major transportation link (California Highway 101), the facility's command and control functions were moved to Schriever AFB, Colorado.
History.
The Air Force Satellite Control Facility (AFSCF) was originally activated at Los Angeles AFS, California on 18 Jun 1965. It was first assigned to the Space Systems Division of Air Force Systems Command, with later moves under the Space and Missile Systems Organization, and Space Division organizations.


Specially Meritorious Service Medal

The Specially Meritorious Service Medal was a military decoration of the United States Navy which was created by Joint Resolution of Congress No. 18 of 3 March 1901. The medal was intended to recognize acts of non-combat meritorious service accomplished during the Spanish–American War.
Description and symbolism.
The ribbon to the Specially Meritorious Service Medal, 1898, is dark red and stands for sacrifice.
Awarded to any member of the U.S. Navy, or United States Marines, the Specially Meritorious Service Medal was presented for acts of gallantry or heroism, not involving armed combat with an enemy, while operating in the territorial waters of Cuba in the year 1898. The medal was primarily awarded to those who had rescued sailors (both U.S. and Spanish) from burning ships following the Battle of Santiago de Cuba at Santiago, Cuba.
By 1935, the Specially Meritorious Service Medal had adopted the status of a commemorative medal; as late as 1942 it still appeared on official US Navy award precedence charts, between the Purple Heart and Presidential Unit Citation. An actual order from the Navy, declaring the decoration obsolete, was never published.
Obverse.
In the center of a dark bronze cross pattée one and three-sixteenths inches wide, a medallion seven-eighths of an inch in diameter. The outer eighth-inch of the medallion, which is raised and forms a circle around the medallion, contains the raised inscription, U.S. NAVAL CAMPAIGN WEST INDIES. A small five-pointed star appears at the base between the words U.S. and INDIES, and an identical star appears between the words CAMPAIGN and WEST. The other words are separated by a bullet. In the center of the medallion there is a fouled anchor canted to the right and surrounded by a wreath of oak bearing nine acorns (to the right) and laurel (to the left). The wreath is tied at the bottom by a bow. The arms of the cross bear the following words: left arm, SPECIALLY; upper arm, MERITORIOUS; right arm, SERVICE; and lower arm, .1898. The edge of each arm is raised and contains a decorative border on the inside.
The anchor denotes naval service, and the wreath represents strength (oak) and victory (laurel). The inscription denotes the purpose of the medal. The small five pointed star represents military service.
Reverse.
The reverse is blank and was used to inscribe the recipient's name along with a brief citation.
Ribbon.
The ribbon to the Specially Meritorious Service Medal, 1898, is dark red and stands for sacrifice. The ribbon is nearly identical to that worn for the Navy Good Conduct Medal, and there were recorded instances of Navy enlisted personnel, who received both the Specially Meritorious Service Medal and the Navy Good Conduct Medal, wearing two identical ribbons for separate decorations.


USCGC Joseph Gerczak

USCGC "Joseph Gerczak" (WPC-1126) is the 26th cutter built for the United States Coast Guard. She will be the second member of the three members of her class to be homeported in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Design.
Like her sister ships, "Joseph Gerczak" is designed to perform search and rescue missions, port security, and the interception of smugglers. She is armed with a remotely controlled, gyrostabilized 25 mm autocannon, four crew-served M2 Browning machine guns, and light arms. She is equipped with a stern launching ramp, that allows her to launch or retrieve a water-jet propelled high-speed auxiliary boat, without first coming to a stop. Her high-speed boat has over-the-horizon capability, and is useful for inspecting other vessels, and deploying boarding parties. She is designed to support her crew of 24 for missions of up to five days, over distances of almost .
Operational history.
Prior to commissioning, the cutter's "plankowner" crew was known for their exceptional prowess on the sand volleyball courts of Houma, Louisiana. Like her sister ships, the "Joseph Gerczak" is designed for missions of five days, in July 2019, while accompanied by the larger , she undertook the nine day voyage from Hawaii to American Samoa. The Coast Guard vessels met with , a from New Zealand, to prepare for actual joint missions.
On February 19, 2020, the Coast Guard's Honolulu station described an incident where a scuba diver's report of the loss of his dive-float helped their life-saving efforts. Divers use standardized highly visible dive-floats to indicate to boaters where they are diving, so they can take steps to avoid those areas, which helps keep divers safe from being run over, when they come to the surface, and are hard to see. Coast Guard personnel who encounter an unattended dive-float normally treat it as an emergency, indicating that a diver is in distress, or has drowned. However, since this diver self-reported the loss of his float, when "Joseph Gerczak" encountered his float, they were aware the owner was safe, and this was not an emergency.
Namesake.
In 2010, Charles "Skip" W. Bowen, who was then the United States Coast Guard's most senior non-commissioned officer, proposed that all 58 cutters in the Sentinel class should be named after enlisted sailors in the Coast Guard, or one of its precursor services, who were recognized for their heroism. In 2015 the Coast Guard announced that Joseph Gerczak, who coolly shot down two Japanese planes, during World War II, before he himself was shot, would be the namesake of the 26th cutter.


List of United States Coast Guard cutters

The List of United States Coast Guard Cutters is a listing of all cutters to have been commissioned by the United States Coast Guard during the history of that service. It is sorted by length down to 65', the minimum length of a USCG cutter.
213' Medium Endurance Cutter (WMEC).
213' Diver Class Cutter (WAT)
179' Patrol Coastal (WPC).
Cyclone class Coastal Patrol Ships on loan from the United States Navy
165' Algonquin class Patrol Boat (WPG).
Also known as 165-Foot (A) Patrol Craft
165' Thetis class Patrol Boat (WPC).
Also known as 165-Foot (B) Patrol Craft


Antigonid Macedonian army

The Antigonid Macedonian army was the army that evolved from the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia in the period when it was ruled by the Antigonid dynasty from 276 BC to 168 BC. It was seen as one of the principal Hellenistic fighting forces until its ultimate defeat at Roman hands at the Battle of Pydna in 168 BC. However, there was a brief resurgence in 150-148 during the revolt of Andriscus, a supposed heir to Perseus.
Starting as just a mere handful of mercenary troops under Antigonus Gonatas in the 270s BC, the Antigonid army eventually became the dominant force in Hellenistic Greece, fighting campaigns against Epirus, the Achaean League, Sparta, Athens, Rhodes and Pergamon, not to mention the numerous Thracian and Celtic tribes that threatened Macedon from the north.
The Antigonid army, as with the army of Philip II and Alexander the Great that came before it, was based principally around the Macedonian phalanx, which was a solid formation of men armed with small shields and long pikes called "sarissae". The majority of Macedonian troops serving in the army would have made up the numbers of the phalanx, which took up to one-third to two-thirds of the entire army on campaign. Alongside the phalanx, the Antigonid army had its elite corps, the Peltasts, numerous Macedonian and allied cavalry and always a considerable amount of allied and mercenary infantry and auxiliary troops.
Background and sources.
The Macedonian army continued to evolve under the Antigonid dynasty. It is uncertain how many men were appointed as "somatophylakes" bodyguards, which numbered eight men at the end of Alexander the Great's reign, while the "hypaspistai" seem to have morphed into assistants of the "somatophylakes" rather than a separate unit in their own right. At the Battle of Cynoscephalae in 197 BC, the Macedonians commanded some 16,000 phalanx pikemen. Alexander the Great's 'royal squadron' of companion cavalry were similarly numbered to the 800 cavalrymen of the 'sacred squadron' (Latin: "sacra ala"; Greek: "hiera ile") commanded by Philip V of Macedon during the Social War of 219 BC. Due to the Roman historian Livy's accounts of the battles of Callinicus in 171 BC and Pydna in 168 BC, it is known that the Macedonian cavalry were also divided into groups with similarly named officers as had existed in Alexander's day. The regular Macedonian cavalry numbered 3,000 at Callinicus, which was separate from the 'sacred squadron' and 'royal cavalry'. Thanks to contemporary inscriptions from Amphipolis and Greia dated 218 and 181 respectively, historians have been able to partially piece together the organization of the Antigonid army under Philip V, such as its command by "tetrarchai" officers assisted by "grammateis" (i.e. secretaries or clerks).
Antigonid army under Antigonus Gonatas.
When Antigonus Gonatas took over from his father, Demetrius I of Macedon, he inherited little more than a few mercenary garrisons spread across Greece. But using his mercenary forces, he was able to defeat an invading Celtic army at Lysimachea in 277 BC. This gave Gonatas the Macedonian throne, which had been in turmoil since the Galatian invasions of 279 BC. However, when Pyrrhus of Epirus invaded Macedon in 274 BC, Antigonus' army suffered some minor defeats and desertions before eventually defecting en masse to Pyrrhus. Once again Gonatas was left with but a mere handful of followers and mercenaries. These forces were of considerable aid to Sparta when Pyrrhus assaulted the city in 272 BC. Pyrrhus was soon killed by a combined effort of the Spartans, the Argives and Antigonus Gonatas. Having now recovered Macedon after the death of Pyrrhus, Gonatas ruled until 239 BC. At this point, the Antigonid kingdom probably had no standing army; the only permanent corps, besides the mercenaries, being the 'horse guards... and the foot guards, the agema'. The army was probably formed by a levy of farmers called out when a serious campaign was expected. Almost all overseas and garrison work was performed by mercenaries. Due to the financial strains that plagued the kingdom, Gonatas primarily hired Galatian and Celtic mercenaries, as they were much cheaper than Greeks. Antigonus Gonatas ruled directly over the original Macedonian kingdom, however he put the newly acquired territory under the control of a strategoi with military powers. By the time of his death, Gonatas had cemented Antigonid dominance in Macedon; however, in Greece itself, Macedon was weaker than it had been under Alexander the Great. This would change with his successors though.
Antigonid army, 239–168 BC.
Demetrius II, father of the future Philip V of Macedon, only ruled for 10 years, but in his reign he fought many campaigns against the northern Thracian, Celtic and Illyrian tribes as well as an Achaean-Aetolian alliance. However his swift death left Antigonus Doson as regent for the young Philip. A resurgent Sparta under Cleomenes III led to war in the Peloponnese and the Achaean League under Aratus of Sicyon turned to Antigonus Doson for help. Doson campaigned against Cleomenes in 224-22 BC. This culminated with the Battle of Sellasia in 222 BC, in which Cleomenes was defeated by an allied army, mainly anchored by a Macedonian army of 13,300 Macedonians and 5,300 mercenaries.
After the death of Doson, Philip took the throne and almost immediately began to campaign. Wars against the Aetolia, Sparta and Elis, as well as a Dardanian invasion kept Philip busy in the years 220-217 BC and gave him a great deal of military experience. Yet Philip's rule would be marked by war with Rome, which culminated with a treaty with Carthage which led to the First Macedonian War. The first war ended in a stalemate and the Peace of Phoinike, which allowed Philip to keep his newly acquired land from his campaigns against the Aetolians, Rome's ally. Between 205 and 201/200 BC Philip used the peace to reorganize his army recruitment system and introduce new strict disciplinary codes for the army.
Peace did not last and an alliance with Antiochus III of the Seleucid Empire, which allowed Philip to campaign in Asia Minor, led to an alliance of Pergamon, Athens and Rhodes who appealed to Rome for help. By 199 BC, the Romans had inflicted some minor defeats on the Macedonians and had also recruited the Aetolian and Achaean Leagues to their side. An army under Titus Quinctius Flamininus was sent to Greece and campaigned against Philip V in 198 BC in the Aous Valley, which Philip defended by using carefully placed artillery and missile troops, leading to many Roman casualties. Using a flanking maneuver, Flaminius managed to dislodge Philip and chase him into Thessaly, where in 197 BC the two sides met at the Battle of Cynoscephalae. Here, Philip was decisively beaten, with 8,000 of his men killed and 5,000 taken prisoner, about half of his entire army.
The defeat left Philip with a weakened kingdom. Consequently, the king set about a system of reforms and reorganized his kingdom, especially in increasing his manpower base for future campaigns. He encouraged large families and imported Thracians from districts he had recently annexed into Macedon proper. Thus, in the autumn of 187 BC, Philip transported segments of the populations of the coastal towns and cities to the northern Paeonian frontier and then moved Thracians and so forth into the evacuated districts of the towns. This 'Macedonised' the frontier and also made it easier to defend. The Thracians moved to the cities and towns were people directly responsible to Philip as king and also a useful force to watch over suspect citizens. New mines were created, old ones were deepened and agricultural and harbour duties were increased to increase the kingdom's revenue.
Overall, these social and economic moves strengthened the kingdom by Philip's death and the accession of his son Perseus of Macedon. By the eve of the Third Macedonian War, Perseus, thanks to his father, had enough grain to last the army 10 years without drawing on harvests in or outside Macedon, enough money to hire 10,000 mercenaries for 10 years, a fully reconstituted army and "arms for three such armies as Perseus possessed in his armouries". In fact, when Aemilius Paullus, the Roman commander who defeated Perseus at Pydna in 168 BC, took the Antigonid royal treasury, he found 6,000 talents left. The army fielded by Perseus in the Third Macedonian war was 43,000 strong, 29,000 of them Macedonians. Compare this to the army of Doson at Sellasia, which had 13,300 Macedonians, or the army of Philip at Cynoscephalae (18,000 Macedonian foot, 2,000 cavalry and 5,500 mercenaries). The years of peace and consolidation had increased the national levy by 9,000 men. However, at the Battle of Pydna in 168 BC, Perseus was severely defeated, with the loss of 20-25,000 killed and 11,000 captured. After this defeat, the Antigonid kingdom was quickly disbanded, with Perseus becoming a Roman prisoner and Macedonia being split up into several autonomous republics.
Amphipolis military codes.
Sometime around the beginning of the second century BC, Philip V introduced a set of new codes for discipline in his army - the Amphipolis codes. As an example, these new measures included fines for missing equipment and weaponry: two obols for not having the "konos" (helmet), 3 obols for missing a "sarissa" and a drachma for missing the shield. We also know from this code that the ordinary phalangite would have been equipped with a leather or linen jerkin known as a "linothorax" and not a full metal cuirass, as the fines for missing cuirasses are limited to officers only. They also dealt with the organization of encampments. Hypaspists were to set up their tents "immediately after those of the king and his immediate entourage".
Peltasts and the "agema".
The most elite, veteran Antigonid-period Macedonian infantry from at least the time of Antigonus III Doson were the peltasts, lighter and more maneuverable soldiers wielding "peltai" javelins, swords, and a smaller bronze shield than Macedonian phalanx pikemen, although they sometimes served in that capacity. The premier guard infantry unit of the regular army, they are not to be confused with the skirmisher troops of the same name, denoted by their shield, the "pelte". Among the peltasts, roughly 2,000 men were selected to serve in the elite "agema" vanguard, with other peltasts numbering roughly 3,000. The amount of peltasts varied over time, perhaps never more than 5,000 men (the largest figure mentioned by ancient historians, an amount that existed in the Social War of 219 BC). They fought alongside the phalanx pikemen, divided now into "chalkaspides" 'bronze shield' and "leukaspides" 'white shield' regiments, up until the very end of the kingdom in 168 BC.
Malcolm Errington writes that by the time of Antigonus III, the "peltastai" formed a separate unit from the Macedonian phalanx and "operated as a form of royal guard similar in function to the earlier "hypaspistai"." According to Walbank the peltast corps was "an infantry force... which fought beside the phalanx in battle, but at other times employed for ambushes, forced marches and special expeditions". Examples of their special actions would be their ambush in Lyncestis and their use, as shock troops, in the storming of Cephallenia. At Pydna, the corps fought as part of the phalanx, in which they were butchered to the last man. The Peltast corps was probably 5,000 strong, with an elite battalion of 2,000 called the "agema". The corps was probably organized into "chiliarchiai" and subdivided like those of the phalanx.
As for term Hypaspist, it still lived on in the army. However, instead of a combat unit, it was a staff corps and bodyguard force for the king. For instance, a Hypaspist was sent by Philip V to Larissa to burn state papers after the defeat at Cynoscephalae.
Chalkaspides and Leukaspides.
Like Alexander's phalanx, the phalanx of the Antigonids was mainly based on men "enrolled territorially from the Macedonian peasantry". "Barbarians" settled in Macedon, like the Thracians and so forth, were given land in return for serving in the phalanx. The phalanx under the Antigonids made up a much higher proportion of the army than under Alexander. At Sellasia, it was 34% of the army, at Cynoscephalae it was 62% and at Pydna it was 49%. The Antigonid phalanx itself was probably divided into two separate corps, the "Chalkaspides" ("bronze-shields") and "Leukaspides" ("white-shields"). Together, they were 10,000 strong in Antigonus Doson's army at Sellasia in 222 BC, though the precise number for each corps is unknown. The "Chalkaspides" were probably more prepared for prolonged combat service than the "Leukaspides" as they are sometimes found on distant expeditions without the other corps.
Cavalry.
The importance and proportion of cavalry in the Antigonid army was far less than in Alexander's army. Whereas the proportion of cavalry to infantry in Alexander's army was about 1:6, in the later Antigonid armys the proportion was about 1:20. However, we must remember that Philip II had a similar proportion of cavalry to infantry and the reasoning for the higher amounts of mounted forces in Alexander's campaigns was due to the vast distance of territory needed to be travelled, especially in Persia. In Alexander's campaigns, swift advances and the ability to cover vast distances were the key to success. In comparison, for the Antigonid commanders, the lack of any real enemy cavalry and short distances meant cavalry were not needed as much and they reverted to pitched heavy infantry battle. Antigonus Doson had only 300 Macedonian horse with him at Sellasia in 222 BC, though by the reign of Philip V the amount of cavalry had increased, with Philip fielding about 2,000 Macedonian and Thessalian horse in 197 BC. A sizeable part of the Macedonian cavalry was actually supplied by Thessaly, whose city-states continued to supply horse for the Antigonid kings as they had for Alexander and his father. However, the use of Thessalian cavalry decreased in 196 BC, when the Romans, triumphant after Cynoscephalae, gave parts of Macedonian Thessaly to their allies, the Aetolians. Perseus, due to his father's extensive recruitment drive and a period of 30 years of peace, was able to field 3,000 purely Macedonian cavalry to serve with him in the Third Macedonian War. The core guard cavalry unit was the small royal or 'sacred' squadron. This unit seems to have been between 300 and 400 strong, as Doson had that amount with him at Sellasia and Philip V had 400 'household' cavalry with him on his campaigns.
Due to the general lack of native horse, the Macedonians usually supplemented their cavalry with that of allies and mercenaries. At Sellasia, alongsides Doson's 300, there were 600 allied and 300 mercenary cavalry. Meanwhile, at Pydna, Perseus had a 1,000 picked allied Thracian horse under Cotys, the king of the Odrysai. The infantry phalanx depended heavily on the cavalry, which of course the Antigonids lacked in numbers. The weakness and neglect of forces on the flanks, most importantly cavalry forces, led to the exploitation of gaps in the phalanx at Cynoscephalae and Pydna.
Navy.
Following the initiative of Philip II, Macedonian kings continued to expand and equip the navy. Cassander maintained a small fleet at Pydna, Demetrius I of Macedon had one at Pella, and Antigonus II Gonatas, while serving as a general for Demetrius in Greece, used the navy to secure the Macedonian holdings in Demetrias, Chalkis, Piraeus, and Corinth. The navy was considerably expanded during the Chremonidean War (267–261 BC), allowing the Macedonian navy to defeat the Ptolemaic Egyptian Navy at the 255 BC Battle of Cos and 245 BC Battle of Andros, and enabling Macedonian influence to spread over the Cyclades. Antigonus III Doson used the Macedonian navy to invade Caria, while Philip V allegedly sent two-hundred ships, some of them captured from the Ptolemies, to fight in the (unsuccessful) Battle of Chios in 201 BC. The Macedonian navy was reduced to a mere six vessels as agreed in the 197 BC peace treaty that concluded the Second Macedonian War with the Roman Republic, although Perseus of Macedon quickly assembled some "lemboi" at the outbreak of the Third Macedonian War in 171 BC.
The army of Andriscus.
In 149 BC, nearly 20 years after the defeat of Perseus at Pydna, Andriscus, a mercenary and supposed heir to Perseus, went to Demetrius I of Syria for aid, but was sent as a prisoner to Rome. He quickly made his escape and sought refuge amongst the Thracian tribes to the north of Macedon. There, Andriscus gained the support of the Thracian king Teres and was given a troop of 100 men, with another 100 sent by other Thracian chieftains. Andriscus quickly defeated the forces of the several autonomous Macedonian republics in battle beyond the Strymon in the lands of the Odomanti tribe. The Thracian troops of Andriscus would have primarily been Peltast skirmisher infantry and light cavalry. Andriscus, having established himself as the new king of Macedon, under the name Philip VI, decisively defeated a Roman army under Publius Juventius. Having defeated the Romans, Andriscus invaded Thessaly in 148 BC, where he suffered a setback in battle against the Achaean League, commanded by Scipio Nasica. A Roman army under Quintus Caecilius Metellus then invaded Macedon and defeated Andriscus at the Second Battle of Pydna. The defeat was probably helped by the defection of Telestes, the general appointed by Andriscus to command his cavalry. The Macedonian aristocratic cavalry joined Telestes, as the richer classes supported the Romans more than they did Andriscus, and any hope of success was dead.


List of Sri Lanka Army regiments and corps

This is a list of all combat and combat support regiments and corps of the Sri Lanka Army.


Cardedeu order of battle

The Cardedeu order of battle lists the troops that fought in the Battle of Cardedeu (16 December 1808) and several other battles fought between June and December in the Spanish province of Catalonia during the Peninsular War. In February 1808, Imperial French forces treacherously seized Barcelona on 29 February and Sant Ferran Castle on 15 March as well as other fortresses in Spain. The Dos de Mayo Uprising broke out when the Spanish people found that Emperor Napoleon deposed the Spanish royal family and set up his brother Joseph Bonaparte as their new king. The 12,000 Imperial French soldiers under Guillaume Philibert Duhesme occupying Catalonia were beaten at the Battles of El Bruch and Gerona in June. Though Duhesme was reinforced by another French division, the Spanish defeated him at the Second Siege of Gerona in July and August. With Duhesme blockaded in Barcelona, Napoleon appointed Laurent Gouvion Saint-Cyr as commander of the VII Corps, added two good divisions and other troops to his force, and ordered him to relieve Barcelona. Saint-Cyr succeeded in this task, winning the battles of Roses, Cardedeu and Molins de Rei in December.
Imperial French order of battle.
On 10 October 1808, the VII Corps numbered 42,382 soldiers, of whom 4,948 men were in the hospital and 1,302 were detached. However, not all its assigned troops had joined by that date. Note that the Observation Corps became part of VII Corps when Saint-Cyr assumed command. It is probable that the corps counted over 50,000 men. Joseph Chabran's division was made up of veteran French units. The Provisional Cavalry regiments were created by assembling the depot squadrons, all conscripts, from as many as four different regiments. Honoré Charles Reille's division was a mass of second-class units cobbled together from National Guards, provisional battalions, Swiss, and a "French" regiment from recently annexed Tuscany. The Neapolitans were universally considered the worst troops in Europe. On the other hand, the divisions of Joseph Souham and Domenico Pino were composed of crack troops.
Spanish order of battle.
The Royal Spanish army included three Irish regiments, including the "Ultonia" Infantry Regiment. There were also six Swiss regiments, among them the 1st "Wimpfen" and 2nd "Reding senior" Infantry Regiments. The Provincial Grenadiers were a militia formation. Uniquely among the provinces of Spain, Catalonia raised its own type of militia, the miquelets. This was a mass levy of military aged men that was armed and paid by the church parishes. They were sometimes called "somatenes" after the alarm-bell ("somaten") used to alert them. The miquelets were organized into 1,000-man "tercios". Newly-raised units are labeled "Volunteers" or "new". Miquelets and militia have the Catalan flag. All others are regulars.
During the Siege of Roses, the garrison consisted of 150 men of the "Ultonia" Regiment, one-half of the 2nd of Barcelona Light Infantry Regiment, one company of the 1st "Wimpfen" Swiss Regiment, the "Lerida" and "Igualada" Tercios, and elements of the "Berga" and "Figueras" Tercios. These were later reinforced by a small battalion of the "Borbon" Regiment. Nearly all these troops went into captivity when the place surrendered on 5 December.
One authority stated that Reding commanded two battalions each of the 1st Grenada, Baza, and Almeria Infantry Regiments at Cardedeu. Vives led newly organized Catalan units at Cardedeu, plus seven guns, but the source did not specify which units. A second historian credited the Spanish at Cardedeu with 5,000 Granadan troops under Reding and 4,000 Catalans under Vives, but did not list the individual units. This force included 600 cavalrymen and seven field guns. During the battle, Francisco Milans del Bosch was to the east with 3,000 miquelets and Luis Rebolledo de Palafox y Melci, 1st marqués de Lazán was to the north with perhaps 6,000 more soldiers. However, Milans' men were still reeling from their defeat the day before and Lazán was too slow; neither intervened at Cardedeu.


Multinational Specialized Unit

The Multinational Specialized Unit (MSU), is a unit of the Carabinieri, dedicated to the military missions abroad, including the military and civilian police tasks, peacekeeping operations, crowd and riot control.
After its creation in 1998, MSU units took part in many different NATO operations, in Albania, Kosovo, Bosnia Herzegovina and Iraq.
History.
Initially it has employed members of the 7th Carabinieri Regiment ""Trentino-Alto Adige", the 13th Carabinieri Regiment "Friuli-Venezia Giulia" and the 1st Parachute Carabinieri Regiment "Tuscania"". During the next years it has employed members from all over Italy, from every other Carabinieri units.
Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The first mission where MSU was involved was the NATO-SFOR, in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav Wars. MSU was composed by Italian Carabinieri and members of the Romanian Military Police, among soldiers of Austria, Hungary and Slovenia.
Albania.
After the tension in the Balkan area, during the Yugoslav Wars, in particular in the northern part of Kosovo a MSU detachment was deployed in Albania during Operation Allied Harbor, to aid the country in the refugees management. The mission was codenamed "AFOR".
Iraq.
During the NATO Mission, inside the Multi-National Force – Iraq, MSU was deployed alongside other Italians units. The Italian Mission codename was Operation Ancient Babylon. MSU was composed by Italian Carabinieri, Italian Army liaison officers, members of Romanian Military Police and Portuguese National Republican Guard. During the mission MSU suffered heavy losses, in particular for the 2003 Nasiriyah bombing.
Kosovo.
Since 1999, after the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244, MSU has been deployed into Kosovo for peacekeeping operations within NATO-KFOR. After years it's still present in the theatre, contributing to maintain peace and stability in the country.
From 1999 to 2013 where part of MSU also the French National Gendarmerie, Estonian Military Police and Austrian Military Police. Since 2013 is composed entirely by the Italian Carabinieri and its main mission its to patrol the entire city of Mitrovica 24/7, in particular the Ibar Bridge.
The KFOR-MSU Regiment was commanded by Italian Carabinieri Colonel Ruggiero Capodivento. It is now led by Colonel Stefano Fedele.


List of United States Navy weapons

References.
Globalsecurity.org Munitions section


United States Air Force Fire Protection

The United States Air Force Fire Protection career specialty is the military's premiere specialty in fire protection. Much like their civilian counterparts, these military firefighters protect people, property, and the environment from fires and disasters. They provide firefighting, specialized rescue, HazMat responses, as well as provide fire prevention and response to weapons of mass destruction. Though every branch has its own fire protection career specialties (USAF - 3E7X1, Army - 12M, USMC - 7051, Navy - AB), they all must graduate from the Air Force's 13.5 week fire academy in San Angelo, Texas before being awarded their Firefighter certification.
History.
Prior to the National Security Act of 1947 and the subsequent splitting of the Air Corps from the US Army, fire protection in the Armed Forces finds its roots in the armies of the Civil War.
Federal firefighting began when Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton issued an executive order to Mayor George Opdyke of New York in 1862 for fire protection assistance for the Federal Army. Mayor Opdyke selected Assistant Chief Engineer John Baulch of Eagle Engine Company No. 13, along with Mohawk Engine No. 16 and Peterson Engine No. 31 to provide service to the Federal Army, and they were shipped to Fortress Monroe. John Baulch was appointed Chief Engineer of the Fire Department of the Southern Division of the Federal Army.
During WWI, the United States Army, under the Quartermaster Corps, provided two types of firefighting companies: Fire Truck and Hose Companies. Fire Marshalls of this era held the rank of 1st Lieutenant or Captain. Station Captains were typically manned by a Sergeant First Class. Just three days prior to the December 7th attacks on Pearl Harbor, the Army transferred the firefighting function from the Quartermaster Corps to the Corps of Engineers and were dubbed Engineer Firefighting Platoons (EFFPs). Engineer Aviation Firefighting Platoons (EAFFPs) were established to provide fire protection for the Army Air Forces. This is the beginnings of the USAF Fire Protection field
The Air Force opened its first firefighting school at Lowry Air Force Base, which moved to Greenville AFB, MS, and, in 1964 to Chanute Air Force Base in Illinois. In 1992, the school was moved finally to Goodfellow AFB in San Angelo, Texas and renamed the Louis F. Garland Department of Defense Fire Academy, where it still trains firefighters from every branch of the Armed Forces.
In the early days of the Air Force fire service, the Fire Chief was a civilian position only. The Air Force struggled to maintain adequate numbers of firefighters because the airmen knew they would never be able to become fire chief as a member of the Armed Services.
Organization.
The top firefighter position in the Air Force, the "top Fire Chief," is the Air Force Chief of Fire & Emergency Services Division of the Air Force Civil Engineer Center Readiness Directorate, and is identified by the abbreviation CXF. The CXF is one of six subject matter experts in the Readiness Directorate (CX) and establishes technical and administrative policy guidance for fire emergency operations.
Outside of the basic positions listed above, there are additional titles that exist within the fire service:
Traditions.
Though the civilian fire service is steeped in tradition, the military fire service stymies the amount of distinguishing traditions that their fire companies may establish.
Helmet colors depicting rank is a tradition in the fire service among both civilian and military.
In some departments, the yellow helmet is used to indicate a probationary firefighter. In other departments, the ranks of "probie" through Captain wear the same color helmet and the rank is depicted by the color of the shield.
Dog - The use of a dog (most notably, the Dalmatian) as a mascot is one of the most distinguishing traditions of fire services. In the military, the fire service is typically portrayed as a Bulldog or Dalmatian. At the fire academy, members of the 312th Training Squadron are referred to as "Fire Dawgs" and are personified by a Bulldog in a fire helmet.
Brotherhood - Because firefighters often spend half of their lives with each other it is only natural that lasting relationships develop and a family atmosphere evolves. As a result, the Air Force fire department tends to view it as a close-knit brotherhood, a fraternal society separate from the "Regular Air Force."
Training.
Training at the Louis F. Garland Fire Academy is some of the most difficult firefighting training in the world. The 17th Training Wing has as its primary mission "To train world-class firefighters."
The fire academy's 68-day course length does not include weekends and is actually 13.5 weeks in length. School is broken up into six blocks of instruction, varying in length, that include:
Initially, the fire training was designed to weed out those who could not perform. However, in the last 10 years the 80% test requirement to pass was lowered to 70%, and the 8-minute timed 'Firefighter's PT' passing requirement was eliminated in order to lower the wash-out rate.
Special Operations.
Fire Department Special Operations are any category of operation that exists outside the normal mission of firefighting. The “bread and butter” operations of a fire department typically include fire suppression, ventilation, ladder operations, fire ground searches, etc. These fall under the category ‘standard operations.’ Special Operations are "those emergency incidents to which the fire department responds that require specific and advanced training and specialized tools and equipment," and include specialized rescue operations such as High Angle, Trench, Confined Space, and Swift Water Rescue, Marine firefighting, Hazardous Material Response, Urban Search and Rescue (USAR), military units also have Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR), and in some instances, Aircraft Rescue Firefighting (ARFF). These special operations required additional training and certification to perform. Often, these tasks are performed by heavy rescue or squad units.
In the 1960s Airborne Firefighting training was conducted at Stead AFB, NV, later moving to Sheppard AFB, TX for firefighting assignments with Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadrons.
Airborne Rescuemen.
Beginning in 1964 in Da Nang and Bien Hoa Air Bases in Vietnam, the USAF Air Rescue Service began using Kaman HH-43 Huskies for local base recovery (LBR) and aircrew recovery (ACR) missions. Assigned to these "Pedro" flights, as they became known by their callsigns, were typically a tailored combination of Pilot, Copilot, Flight Engineer/Crew Chief, Aeromedical Technician, Airborne Rescuemen/Firefighters, a Pararescue Jumper (PJ) and a Flight Mechanic/Engineer. These flights are currently crewed by USAF Pararescuemen today. Firefighters assigned to these units were called Airborne Rescuemen (ABR). All Pedro units had (ABR) Airborne Rescuemen/Firefighters assigned.
During the Vietnam War HH-43 aircrews saved more lives in combat than crews flying any other USAF helicopter. From 1966 to 1970, they performed a total of 888 combat saves—343 aircrew rescues and 545 non-aircrew rescues. It was an HH-43 that carried Airman 1st Class William H. Pitsenbarger on his Medal of Honor mission on April 11, 1966.
Pedro 44.
October 10, 1968, Pedro 44, Detachment 1 of the 38th ARRS, was responding to a downed B-57 near Phan Rang AB, RVN when a mechanical failure with the HH43 Huskie caused the aircraft to crash to the ground. The crew, pilot Maj. Donald Brooks, co-pilot Capt. Von Liebernecht, firefighters TSgt Emmet Orr and SSgt Milard Bledsoe, and Medical Technician TSgt Angel Luna all died in the crash.
Recent events.
Airborne RED HORSE.
Based on the suggestion of then-Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, who asked the Air Force to develop its own combat construction teams, the Air Force created RED HORSE Squadrons. In 2002, Gen. John Jumper further developed the RED HORSE mission by establishing three new Airborne RED HORSE units. Airborne RED HORSE teams are significantly different than the rest of traditional RED HORSE combat engineer squadrons in that members are airborne qualified and use much lighter specialized equipment. ARH team members also attend a 13-day Army Air Assault course to learn how to sling-load their equipment and rappel from helicopters. ARH teams take 21 traditional RED HORSE members and augment them with six firefighters, six explosive ordnance disposal technicians, two chemical and biological readiness experts, and security forces personnel, as needed.
Combat-Ready.
Two Airmen with the 341st Civil Engineer Squadron firefighters graduate along with Security Forces peers from a Tactical Response Force Orientation Course Oct. 25, 2019, at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. “During the course they go through close-quarters combat, rappelling, helicopter operations, small-unit-tactics, individual movement tactics, hostage situations and rescue, recapture-recovery operations, barricaded suspects and active shooter response,” said SSgt Phillip Hopkins. To wrap up the course, members conducted 72-hour sleep deprivation operations. The new initiative essentially utilizes Air Force Firefighter/EMTs as combat medics
Notable USAF Firefighters.
SSgt Ray Rangel, assigned the 732nd Expeditionary Civil Engineering Squadron Fire Department, died during a rescue response when an Army Humvee from the 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry, 3d Infantry Division overturned in a canal during a combat patrol near Balad AB, Iraq 13 February 2005.
Robert A. McAllister. Over the course of his 28-year Air Force career, he worked every position in the fire station including firefighter, crew chief, rescueman, rescue specialist, station chief, assistant chief, fire inspector, training chief, deputy chief and fire chief. He even worked directly with Pararescue Jumpers as a part of the elite Airborne Rescue Specialist/Firefighter.
During his time in Vietnam, he earned many prestigious medals, decorations and awards including 33 Air Medals for over 1,155 combat missions, the Silver Star for his participation in the recovery of a downed B-52H tail gunner, two Bronze Stars, six Meritorious Service Medals, six Air Force Commendation Medals and the Vietnamese Medal of Honor for training Vietnamese firefighters. McAllister was directly responsible for saving 17 Airmen and recovering several remains of those killed in action. He retired at the rank of Senior Master Sergeant and continued working for the Air Force in the civilian sector.
Airman First Class Robert Doss was a firefighter and rescueman with Pacific Air Rescue Center (PARC) Detachment 4. On 27 April 1965, at 1605 hours, an A-1 Skyraider of the RVNAF 23rd Tactical Wing, fully fueled and laden with Mk82 500-pound bombs, crashed during take-off. A1C Doss and his crew responded immediately. As the rescue crew approached the burning aircraft to rescue the pilot, the ordinance on the aircraft exploded. A1C Doss was struck in the chest by a fragment from the exploding aircraft and was killed.


USCGC Harriet Lane

USCGC "Harriet Lane" refers to three ships of the United States Coast Guard:


William Charles Bowser

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William "Bill" Charles Bowser (June 25, 1915–June 28, 2006) served as a member of the all-black Pea Island Life-Saving Station along the Outer Banks of North Carolina from 1935 to 1938. He was one of the last surviving members of the Pea Island Station that was decommissioned after World War II. Bowser received the U.S. Coast Guard Gold Lifesaving Medal in March 1996 at the Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C. on behalf of the crew of the historic 1896 rescue of nine persons from the schooner E.S. Newman. Authors David Wright and David Zoby co-wrote the history of the Pea Island Station in the book titled "Fire on the Beach".


Special Emergency Response Team

The Special Emergency Response Team (SERT) () was an elite police tactical unit of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). The SERT was formed in 1986 to provide a tactical capability to respond to major terrorist incidents throughout Canada. The unit was disbanded in 1993 when responsibility for counter terrorist response transferred from the RCMP to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF).
History.
HARP.
In 1978, the RCMP commenced the Emergency Response Team (ERT) Program developing an Emergency Response Team Course and establishing 31 part-time Emergency Response Team tactical units across Canada.
In 1981, the Solicitor General directed the RCMP to form a counter terrorist unit the Hostage Assault and Rescue Program (HARP) to be based in Ottawa from the best ERT members in the ERT Program. HARP was to provide security for the 7th G7 Summit to be held in July 1981 in Montebello. The selected members were trained at Canadian Forces Base Petawawa by the British Army 22 Special Air Service (22 SAS) with CAF support. In late June 1981, 28 members completed the program. The RCMP had decided to not establish HARP as a full-time unit with members after serving a three-month period required to rotate back to their ERT for a period of one and half months. The program ended after an agreement could not be reached with the members who had requested that HARP be made full-time so that they could be based permanently in Ottawa.
In March 1985, terrorists attacked the Turkish embassy in Ottawa killing a security guard and holding the embassy occupants hostage for several hours. In May, the Solicitor General submitted a proposal to Cabinet to establish a full-time national counter terrorist unit by either the RCMP or the CAF. At the time, the CAF did not have a special operations force. Neither the RCMP or CAF wanted the responsibility. In June, terrorists placed a bomb on Air India Flight 182 in Toronto and also a bomb on CP Air Flight 003 in Vancouver. In December, Cabinet decided to form a unit and on 22 January 1986 selected the RCMP to create the unit.
Formation.
In March 1986, the SERT was established tasked to respond to hostage incidents involving foreign diplomats or other crises beyond the capability of the ERT. SERT was confined to operating within Canadian territory and could not participate in operations to rescue Canadians involved in a terrorist incident abroad. SERT consisted of 49 operators divided into two sub-units of 24 who rotated on a monthly basis between on call and training, and if required, could deploy as a whole unit.
The former HARP members formed the initial nucleus of the unit with additional operators recruited from the ERT Program which at the time had approximately 350 members. To be eligible to apply for SERT a volunteer must have had seven years of service with the RCMP. Volunteers had to pass a nine-day selection course and complete a six-month training course to respond to incidents on land such as barricaded strongholds, trains, planes and vehicles. The course was based on methods and tactics of the 22 SAS, the US FBI Hostage Rescue Team and the German Federal Police GSG 9. SERT had a limited capacity to respond to maritime counter-terrorism incidents such as at sea.
In 1987, the RCMP purchased of land about from Ottawa for a training facility for Dwyer Hill. The Dwyer Hill Training Facility construction was completed in 1989 with the facility providing an indoor swimming pool, 50-metre indoor range, Close Quarter Battle House, Method of Entry building, four-storey concrete tower, large passenger bus, 300-metre range sniper range and a former Air Canada Douglas DC-8.
In 1990, the Royal Canadian Air Force formed the SERT Assault Helicopter (SAH) Flight in 450 Tactical Helicopter Squadron to provide dedicated aviation support to SERT with three CH-135 Twin Huey helicopters. Earlier in 1987, a MOU had been agreed between the RCMP and the CAF for the provision of fixed wing and rotary wing support for SERT training and operations.
Since inception, SERT had never been deployed on an operation. A SERT sub-unit pre-deployed in readiness to support law enforcement for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 1987 held in Vancouver and in 1988 to the XV Olympic Winter Games in Calgary and to the 14th G7 Summit in Toronto.
SERT had been concerned for sometime that due to its size it lacked the capacity to competently assault a wide-bodied aircraft and that it would require an increase to its size with the additional of a third sub-unit. In February 1992, the Solicitor General finally provided SERT with the authority to commence recruitment for an additional sub-unit which would bring the total strength of unit to 72 operators.
The Senate Special Committee on Terrorism and the Public Safety produced a report in 1989 that criticized the RCMP for failing to have conducted training exercises between SERT and other Canadian police forces tactical units. The Committee's earlier report in 1987 had found that there was also a reluctance on the part of other police forces to train with the RCMP. There was a view in some large police forces that their own tactical units were as capable as SERT and that they would not require assistance from the RCMP to resolve a terrorist incident.
Disbandment.
In February 1992, the federal government decided to transfer responsibility for national counter terrorism response to the Canadian Armed Forces. The government had reduced the budget of all federal departments who had to in-turn implemented cuts. The RCMP estimated that they would save approximately $5 million annually as a result of the transfer. The CAF view on raising a special operations force had changed from 1985 and it was now open to a proposal being driven by the Deputy Minister of National Defence Robert Fowler to assume the responsibility from the RCMP.
The CAF formed a special operations force Joint Task Force 2 (JTF 2) with SERT formally handing over responsibility to JTF 2 on 31 March, with the unit becoming operational the following day on 1 April 1992. SERT operators provided training to the initial JTF 2 volunteers based on their own selection and training course. The SERT Dwyer Hill Training Centre was handed over to JTF 2. The JTF 2 role remained the same as the SERT of counter terrorist response ('black role') until 1994 when the Chief of the Defence Staff approved an expansion of JTF 2 to include the additional role of war time special operations ('green role'). In 2001, JTF 2 began to develop a maritime-counter terrorism capability.


Battle Effectiveness Award

The Battle Effectiveness Award (formerly the Battle Efficiency Award, commonly known as the Battle "E"), is awarded annually to the small number of United States Navy ships, submarines, aviation, and other units that win their battle effectiveness competition.
The criterion for the Battle Effectiveness Award is the overall readiness of the command to carry out its assigned wartime tasks, and is based on a year-long evaluation. The competition for the award is, and has always been, extremely keen. To win, a ship or unit must demonstrate the highest state of battle readiness.
The Battle Effectiveness Award recognizes sustained fast and winning performance in an operational environment within a command. To qualify for Battle "E" consideration, a ship must win a minimum of four of the six Command Excellence awards and be nominated by their immediate superior in command. Eligibility for the award demands day-to-day demonstrated excellence in addition to superior achievement during the certifications and qualifications conducted throughout the year. A ship’s performance during training exercises, weapons inspections, and tactical readiness examinations are among the 16 different areas that are considered in the competition.
Ships that win a battle effectiveness competition are authorized to paint a white "E" with black shadowing on their bridge wings or stacks to display evidence of the honor. For each subsequent consecutive competition won, the ship paints an angled line, or hashmark, below the white "E". The very rare winners of five consecutive "E"s replace the white "E" and hashmarks with a gold "E" and silver star just above. The "E" and any hashmarks are removed in the year the ship first fails to win the award.
Personnel of ships and units that win the Battle "E" are authorized to wear the Navy "E" Ribbon and Battle "E" Device. Before 1976, Navy enlisted personnel at pay grade E-6 and below wore a small cloth "E" on their uniform sleeves (naval officers, chief petty officers, and all Marine Corps personnel wore nothing), with hashmarks and color corresponding to that on their ship or unit.
The latest revision of the Surface Forces Training Manual (SURFORTRAMAN) has changed the name of the Battle Efficiency Award to the Battle Effectiveness Award for COMNAVSURFOR ships.
Command Excellence Awards.
Command Excellence Awards are painted and displayed on the port and starboard side of the bulwark, aft of the Battle "E".


Janet Merlo

Janet Merlo (born 1963 in Newfoundland, Canada) joined the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in 1991 and was transferred to British Columbia. In 2007, she filed a lawsuit against the RCMP for what she described as almost daily harassment. In 2010, she took a medical discharge from the police service. In 2012, after speaking publicly about gender based harassment in the RCMP (Canada's National Police Force), Merlo became the representative plaintiff in a proposed class action lawsuit against the force and the Solicitor General of Canada. The group of current and retired female police officers who have requested to join the class action has now grown to almost 400. In June, 2015, Merlo's lawyers presented arguments to the court in British Columbia asking for class action status, due to allegations of systemic sexual harassment and misconduct.
In her memoir, "No One To Tell: Breaking My Silence on Life in the RCMP", published by Breakwater Books in 2013, Merlo detailed the discrimination she experienced and the depression it led to. She stated that the sexual harassment led to post-traumatic stress syndrome.


Coast Guard Air Station North Bend

Coast Guard Air Station North Bend (CGAS North Bend) was established September 28, 1974 at Southwest Oregon Regional Airport in North Bend, Oregon, United States. The unit houses 153 active duty, nine reserve duty and five civilian personnel. The unit operates five Eurocopter HH-65 Dolphin helicopters. CGAS North Bend received its first upgraded HH-65C Dolphin in 2007 The unit functions include search and rescue, law enforcement, marine environmental protection, aids to navigation, and enforcement of federal treaties.


Stephen H. Grimes

Stephen Henry "Steve" Grimes (born November 17, 1927) is an American lawyer and jurist. He served as a justice of the Florida Supreme Court from 1987 to 1996, including as Chief Justice from 1994 until 1996.
Early life and education.
Grimes was born in Peoria, Illinois, the son of Henry H. and June K. Grimes. He received his Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Florida in 1950 and his LL.B. from the University of Florida Law School in 1954 with honors. At UF Grimes was president of Alpha Tau Omega. He was a member of Florida Blue Key, Phi Delta Phi legal honor society and the Order of the Coif and served as editor-in-chief of the "Florida Law Review".
Career.
Grimes served in the U.S. Navy from 1951-1953 before moving to Bartow, Florida and joining the law firm of Holland & Knight. He became the head of the firm's litigation department. Grimes served as president of the Tenth Judicial Circuit Bar Association in 1966 and became a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers in 1971.
Grimes was appointed to the Florida Second District Court of Appeal in October 1973, serving as chief judge from 1978-1980. Grimes was the chair of the Florida Conference of District Court of Appeal Judges from 1978–80 and was also a member of the Florida Supreme Court Appellate Structure Commission, the Florida Supreme Court Article V Review Commission, the Florida Council on Criminal Justice, and the Florida Bar Tort Litigation Review Commission. In addition Grimes has served as vice-chair of the Florida Appellate Rules Committee, and the Florida Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions in Criminal Cases, serving as chair for two years. Grimes was also a member of the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission from 1983–86 and was its vice-chair for two years. He chaired the Judicial Council of Florida from 1989-1994.
Florida Governor Bob Martinez appointed Grimes to the Florida Supreme Court on January 30, 1987. He became Chair of the Article V Task Force in 1994, and served as a faculty member of the Florida Judicial College. Grimes was selected by the court as Chief Justice on April 21, 1994, serving until May 31, 1996, when he left the court due to mandatory retirement provisions in the Florida Constitution After leaving the court he returned to Holland & Knight.
Outside the law.
Grimes served as president of the Greater Bartow Chamber of Commerce in 1964. He has also served on the boards of the Polk Public Museum, the Bartow Memorial Hospital, the Bartow Public Library, and the Polk County Law Library. Grimes has also been the president of the Bartow Rotary Club, and he was the district governor of Rotary International from 1960–1961; he is a member of the Rotary Club of Tallahassee. Grimes served on the board of trustees for Polk Community College for three years and was chair in 1970.
Grimes was an active member of the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Bartow for over 30 years, and was vice counsel of the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida from 1971-1973.
Grimes married Faye Fulghum of Lakeland in 1951; they have four daughters (Gay, Mary June, Sue, and Sheri) and nine grandchildren.
Grimes has taught as an adjunct instructor of criminal justice at Florida Southern College. In 1980 he received an honorary Doctor of Laws from Stetson University.