Shipmate of the Week – YNC Stepheni Norton
Port Security Unit 311 is an expeditionary unit responsible for providing port security in support of military or humanitarian operations worldwide, ready to deploy within 96 hours of notification and establishing sustained operations within 24 hours. The unit deploys on the frontlines of global operations but in order to get there they need support; that support is led by Chief Petty Officer Stepheni Norton.
Deployment to South Korea: Base camp
With air temperatures hovering around freezing every night, steaming hot showers were a welcomed luxury for more than 1,200 deployed Coast Guard, Army, Navy, Marine and Air Force personnel at Camp Baldwin, especially once the camp was transformed into a giant mud pit after steady rain showers drenched the clay grounds during the day. Camp Baldwin, a large-scale, temporary military camp built in the middle of a Korean Marine base in Pohang, South Korea.
Flying with Her Majesty’s Royal Navy
The Coast Guard deploys worldwide in service to our nation. Working with partner nations not only strengthens our ranks but also promotes camaraderie between forces of different countries. Lt. Sean Jehu has been deployed to the United Kingdom to learn from, and fly with, the British Royal Navy for this exact reason.
Deployment to South Korea: Advance team
It was a journey that would take more than five weeks, six 32-foot security boats, two pick-up trucks, six boat trailers and 15 five-ton storage containers. This journey included traveling more than 5,000 miles across the Pacific Ocean from Everett, Wash., to Pohang, South Korea. Coast Guard port security units 311, 312 and 313 mobilized 80 tons of gear and more than 100 personnel to participate in one of the largest, international military exercises on the Korean peninsula, Combined Joint Logistics Over the Shore Exercise.
Seized: $27 million worth of cocaine
While on a law enforcement patrol in the western Caribbean Sea Gallatin’s crew seized 2,200 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated value of $27 million. The crew of Gallatin located a 68-foot fishing vessel in the western Caribbean Sea, April 18, 2013, and launched their response boat. The response boat crew boarded the vessel, locating the cocaine and detaining three suspected smugglers.
The universal mission to save lives: Training in Liberia
U.S. Coast Guard members of a mobile training team from the International Training Detachment at Coast Guard Training Center Yorktown, Va. deployed to Liberia in February, 2013 to strengthen local forces and build partnerships for the future.
The Arctic region: An emerging maritime frontier
Operating in the Arctic is not a new venture for the Coast Guard. However, adapting to changing conditions will require foresight, focus and clear priorities. It will also require the closest of collaboration with our partners in the State of Alaska. Improving awareness, modernizing governance and broadening partnerships will best position our Service for long-term success by ensuring safe, secure and environmentally responsible maritime activity in the region.
Enhancing our ability to protect, defend the maritime domain
For more than two decades, Coast Guard port security units have deployed throughout the world and provided security for personnel and supplies needed for Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Uphold Democracy, Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom, New Dawn and Unified Response. PSU members have also mobilized across the continental United States following 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. During each of these deployments, the security units’ watercraft was the legacy 25-foot Transportable Port Security Boat. But there’s a new, more capable asset on the horizon and PSU 311 welcomed the replacement during their current deployment at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay.
The Coast Guard and the fight for cybersecurity
Cyberdefense is taking its rightful place at the forefront of the American military. In the 21st century, computers are the tip of the spear. The Coast Guard is doing its part to keep America safe.
Adm. Papp discusses maritime strategic issues with Adm. Greenert and Gen. Amos
Commandant of the Coast Guard Adm. Bob Papp was joined by Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. James Amos and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert to discuss maritime strategic issues during the WEST 2013 Luncheon Town Hall Address in San Diego, Calif. A main point of discussion during the event was the Commander-in-Chief’s strategic guidance that the U.S military “…will of necessity rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific region.”
