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Special Boat Squadron - ONE


1978-2002 - Special Boat Squadrons

Special Boat Squadron -1

In October 1978, Coastal River Squadron ONE became Special Boat Squadron ONE, spawning three commissioned units -Special Boat Unit ELEVEN (NRF), located at Mare Island, Vallejo, California; Special Boat Unit TWELVE (Active Duty); and Special Boat Unit THIRTEEN (NRF), both located at Coronado, California. In August 1993, the newest addition to the Special Warfare Craft inventory came in the form of the Patrol Coastal (PC) ships. The PCs are designed for fast maneuverable littoral warfare, capable of long range and extended operations. The PCs proved their worth on their maiden cruise when they deployed to Haiti for Operation SUPPORT DEMOCRACY in 1994; they performed invaluable service in every mission area, from coastal patrol and interdiction to SEAL support.

In July 1994, Special Boat Squadron ONE reached a new milestone, elevation to Echelon III status and assumption of major command duties and responsibilities
.  

Special Boat Unit - 11

Special Boat Unit - 12

Special Boat Unit - 13

Special Boat Detachments


Sparks in the Wilderness - Special Boat Units Between Vietnam and Desert Shield by Lt. Phil G. Garn   The period following the end of American involvement in Vietnam in the early 1970's and deployment to Desert Shield in 1990 was a  particularly challenging time for all of Naval Special Warfare and the Special Boat Units in particular. With an odd mix of active and reserve, SEAL and Surface personnel, aging and ill-conceived craft; they struggled against the tide of Eurocentric Cold War during this bleak era in the wilderness. The sparks of tradition, experience, professionalism and enthusiasm bridged this sad gap delivering units
ready to deploy, fight. and win.        Read more here.    
 (added 12-06-06)

03-10-07 Mal Flisk      I was SOC and went to sailing school at the San Diego Recruit training base with Matt and a bunch of other guys. I had told the LT that I already had a skippers license for sailing vessels up to 100', and he told me to stay quiet as I would get a weeks worth of sailing in San Diego harbor for free during duty hours. They insisted we might have to prize crew some dhow or something if we went to the Gulf.     More Mal History Here
 
SPECIAL OPERATIONS CREW/TACTICAL OPERATIONS CREW 1981-1993

In 1981 with Special Boat Units now being commanded by SEALs, the utilization of Combatant Craft in NSW ops were being studied to integrate them into Emergency Contingency Plans. In 1981 a clear weakness was shown that the Boats of the SBUs at the time were not a rapid deployable asset. . . Read more here

SBU-13 SPECIAL OPERATIONS CREW 1981-1984 a personal account from a SOC crewman

When the SOC instruction mandating SOC got to SBU-13 in 1981 it created quite a buzz in the command. The Active side had begun choosing SOC Team members already. I was chosen to be part of the SOC Reserve crew. I felt honored to be chosen for only the best qualified were being picked for this new concept. The original SOC Reserves from SBU-13 were. . .   Read more here


Jim Gray, Author, SOC getting ready to hit the surf zone  at Coronado.


All SOC were SERE qualified Mad Dog Evanouski SOC firing the Stoner LMG, note oddly
enough his old Vietnam tiger stripes blend well with the desert.
Exercise Specter Strike 1982 SOCs used SPETAR Target boats as indigenous craft for the exercise.
 
SBU-11 SOC on San Niclolas Island. Zodiac at sea rendezvous with PB MKIII from SCI SOCs Berry, Johnson, Lipe, LTJG Eberleine, Gray

3 SOC and ROK/UDT
 
PKM, ROK/UDT interpreter SOCs Bill Lipe, and Doc Greenough and PKM crewmembers a South Korean PKM the type craft SOC rode on. Gray on South Korean PKM a ROK/ PKM combatant craft off coast at sunset our ops mostly at night

       
SOC-13 patch made in Korea        

(03-10-08)    The Tactical Operations Crew (TOC) at SBU-13 1990 by Phil G. Garn

San Pedro Harbor was hazily quiet at two in the morning, but not completely still. The cabin cruiser, Crazy Baby, idled forward gradually creeping along side an out bound coastal tanker steaming toward the outer harbor. Inside the old pleasure boat, a swimmer pair fixed the anti-tampering devices to the limpet mines then finished donning their re-breathers, drawing the first draughts of rubber flavored air. Read it here


SBU-12 TOC OPERATIONS 1988-1990 by LCDR Jack Spratt ret.

SBU-12 TOC teams were staffed by the HSB crews. The concept of TOC was to create the capability to us Indigeous craft if necessary in a combat environment. The use of Indigenous craft may come from renting, buying, stealing,or working with trusted agents. This to allow the movement of Naval Special Warfare forces to go unnoticed and unfettered.
We conducted training every chance we got, most of it was using was covert or clandestine inflitration and actual use of Civilian craft of the Coast Guard Auxcilary. Lt Garn's story about MARDEZ90 is a great example of SBU-12's training as well.

We never got to employ our TOC skills in Desert Storm, although a number of abandoned indigenous craft in Kafji, and we developed a couple of contingency plans to use them if necessary.

LT Jack Spratt in Operation Desert Shield/Storm. Note his GREAT personal unoffical  OIC pin with wings on his hat.
 

 

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