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Foreword

Regional
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Japan-U.S. Forces Protecting Common Interests in KEEN EDGE / YAMA SAKURA 2007

Indian Navy Enhances Amphibious Capability Building Trust and Security

Strengthening the ROK-U.S. Alliance in RSOI/FOAL EAGLE 2007

War On Terror  ::

AMAN 2007: Nations United Against Maritime Terrorism

Humanitarian
Aid  ::

Partnership for Health in Vietnam

Partnership for Peace and Security in BALIKATAN 2007

Focus Area ::

U.S. Commitment to Asia-Pacific Security: F-22A Fighter

Happenings  ::

Happenings

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Amphibious Landing
More than 4,000 ROK and U.S. Marines and sailors took part in a combined amphibious landing along the beaches of Mallipo on 29 March 2007. The exercise was a reflection of the bilateral nature of FOAL EAGLE in that the primary control ship directing the combined ROK and U.S. waves of amphibious assault vehicles to the beach was the ROKS Sunginbong. USS Tortuga served as the Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) Control Ship.

The number of personnel in the flag plot aboard the USS Essex on landing day more than doubled, with each person sitting either in front of a logbook, a communication circuit, or a monitoring screen. On a normal day during FOAL EAGLE, the flag plot had roughly 12 ROK and U.S. watch standers coordinating with a combined amphibious task force of eight ships and working in conjunction with a squadron of ROK Navy fire-support assets.

The crews of Tortuga’s three LCACs worked together with ROK Marines to transport equipment such as tanks, Humvees and artillery to the shore for the beach landing. At the same time, Juneau launched amphibious assault vehicles (AAVs) – one every 11 seconds – that put ROK and U.S. Marines on the beach. Juneau simultaneously conducted helicopter operations with CH-53E Sea Stallions, a CH-46 Sea Knight, and an SH-60B Seahawk.

While operations were under way, ROK Navy Lt. Cmdr. Sung Go Lee, who was embarked as a liaison officer, watched the amphibious operations from the Juneau’s bridge. “I’ll never forget my time on the ship; I had a great time being here,” said Lt. Cmdr. Lee. “I had many good experiences watching the ship and learned a lot of things, mainly how to communicate better with the U.S. Navy.”

At the end of the amphibious landing, Juneau recovered the AAVs. “The coordination between ROK and U.S. sailors and Marines was truly impressive,” said U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Nate J. Moyer. “The entire exercise was well planned, decisively executed, and resulted in an incredibly successful training opportunity for both nations’ Navy and Marine Corps.”

“We enjoy a long-standing partnership with the ROK forces,” said U.S. Marine Col. John Mayer. “To be able to do combined amphibious operations — the hallmark of the Marine Corps — with the ROK will strengthen and enhance our capabilities and build our relationship as strategic partners.”

The beach landing not only served as training for the ROK and U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, but also was an opportunity for both forces to interact. “I enjoy being on Tortuga and find the training very beneficial,” said ROK Marine, SSgt. Jang Chul Hwang. “Besides the operational training, playing cards and talking to Tortuga sailors has helped my English as well.”

“Through this combined effort, both forces have shown true teamwork and leadership on operational and logistics levels to get this task completed,” said U.S. Navy Cmdr. Todd A. Lewis, commanding officer of the USS Tortuga. “Their interactions aboard Tortuga allowed all service members to come together for a decisive close to FOAL EAGLE.”

Collaboration for the amphibious landing began at the initial planning conference held in December 2006 in Seoul and was followed by two additional planning conferences in Chinhae. Continual communication between the two staffs during the planning and execution phases led to the successful amphibious assault.

Combined Casualty Evacuation Plan
ROK and U.S. medical officers created a combined casualty evacuation plan (CASEVAC) during the amphibious landing on Mallipo Beach. Medical officers from both sides agreed that the plan was necessary to ensure safety of all personnel.

“I think we both recognized that we needed a combined plan, so that our forces would be able to assist their forces in case of injury and vice versa,” said U.S. Navy Cmdr. (Dr.) Robert J. Hallmark. “The end result achieved just that, and we were able to learn about each other’s medical capabilities in the process.”

Under the CASEVAC plan, medical officials from both forces designed a standard operating procedure for ground forces that would alert a central authority of the casualty, regardless of which nation’s service member was injured. If a casualty was to occur, information was available to direct action for that person, whether it be transportation to a local hospital for ROK personnel or back to USS Essex or USS Juneau for U.S. personnel.

ROK Marine Capt. Ji Hoon Baek and his medical staff, along with Cmdr. Hallmark and his team created smart cards in English and Korean. This helped both forces understand the instructions.

“We share a warrior bond with our counterparts and a necessity to take care of each other on the battlefield, that includes medical services,” said Col. Mayer. “I am very impressed by the plan that was created and look forward to seeing more medical integration in the future.”

Outreaches to ROK Communities
The exercise was also a chance for sailors from several of the 40 ships participating to take part in a total of 23 community relation projects throughout the country. Many U.S. sailors also went sightseeing, had the opportunity to meet the citizens of Korea, and experienced the culture, local cuisines, and shopping.

Sailors of the Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ESXARG) gave back to the communities in Busan and Jinhae through community service projects. Personnel from the USS Essex planted trees at the Jong Duk Won Orphanage in Busan. Personnel from the USS Juneau worked on the Sinae Jae Haul Won Rehabilitation Center in Busan for those with mental and physical disabilities. USS Tortuga crew members visited the Donjin Girls Middle School in Jinhae and then welcomed the students aboard the ship. Tortuga sailors also visited a Jinhae Children’s Home where they cleaned the home and played games with the children.

“As the U.S. Navy, we pride ourselves on working closely not only with our military counterparts but also with members of the community,” said U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Myung B. Kim. “We have a great appreciation for the Republic of Korea in being such gracious hosts and loyal allies that working to better their communities is our way of honoring our well-founded relationship.”

A Successful Exercise
“RSOI gives both the U.S. and the Korean military an opportunity to work together and strengthen an alliance that has existed on the peninsula for more than 50 years,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Stephen Wood, 7th Air Force and Air Component Command commander. “Each year that we practice this, we improve our ability to conduct combat operations and integrate follow-on forces. We hope we never have to do this for real, but are prepared to execute the mission if called upon [to do so]. The lessons learned from RSOI puts us one step closer to transforming and modernizing the alliance into an even stronger, more capable partnership,” said Lt. Gen. Wood.

ROK and U.S. forces strengthened their readiness and gained planning expertise. Both forces reacted to different situational training scenarios designed to improve speed of response, mission effectiveness, interoperability and unity of effort. This type of integrated and combined training helps to ensure the right mix of personnel and equipment at the right place and time and builds a cadre of service members in both countries who have the experience to perform this mission if required. 

“At its most basic level, RSOI and FOAL EAGLE are training opportunities, so that we can be more jointly proficient in what we do. Combat readiness requires practice,” said Capt. Pachuta. “But more than operational proficiency, this exercise creates and reaffirms friendships so that we can more closely work together if any type of emergent situation were to arise.”

“FOAL EAGLE is one of the few opportunities to do multi-warfare training with both the U.S. and ROK units on a large scale across all of our warfare areas to include anti-submarine, anti-air and anti-surface warfare. It flexed our joint and combined capabilities while stressing the importance of the ROK/U.S. alliance,” said U.S. Navy Capt. Gary Waring.

Rear Adm. James P. Wisecup, Commander U.S. Naval Forces Korea, said the exercise was a success. “This was the largest number of ship visits in the Republic of Korea in at least a decade to the cities of Donghae, Chinhae, Pyongtaek, Pohang and Busan,” noted Rear Adm. Wisecup. “Engagement between the ships’ crews, the ROK Navy and the host cities was absolutely amazing. I feel this exercise was a complete success, positively enhancing the U.S. Navy’s reputation and visibility on the peninsula.”

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