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thedrifter
07-24-03, 03:27 PM
Return of 5 ships from gulf expected today

By James W. Crawley
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

July 24, 2003

It took more than a week to load the five ships in January as the Marines prepared to leave for the Persian Gulf and war against Iraq.

When the amphibious assault ships Boxer and Bonhomme Richard, dock landing ship Pearl Harbor and transport dock ships Cleveland and Dubuque return home today, it will take only two days to unload the 3,542 Marines and their tanks, helicopters, armored personnel carriers, Humvees, Harrier jump jets, artillery cannons and trucks.

It takes longer to pack a ship because maneuvering vehicles and large containers on board and securing them is more time-consuming than offloading the gear onto landing craft.

The Marines, mostly from Camp Pendleton and Miramar Marine Corps Air Station, will take much of today and tomorrow to remove their gear while the vessels float off the coast of Camp Pendleton.

The flotilla's helicopter units flew nearly 300 special operations troops to rescue prisoner of war Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch from a hospital in Nasiriyah. The troops rescued the soldier, the first successful POW rescue since World War II, and recovered the bodies of nine other U.S. troops. They will return to Miramar tomorrow.

The ships will arrive Saturday morning for a homecoming celebration at San Diego Naval Station at 32nd Street. Nearly 3,500 sailors are aboard the five vessels.

A total of seven amphibious ships, known as Amphibious Task Force West, left San Diego on Jan. 17 for the Persian Gulf. The other two ships, the Comstock and Anchorage, both dock landing ships, arrived home earlier this month.

In 35 days, the ships steamed nonstop to the gulf, offloading the Marines and their equipment in late February in Kuwait. The Marines then moved to camps near the Kuwait-Iraq border and readied for the war, which started March 20.

While the Marines fought in Iraq, the jets and helicopters flew attack and support missions from several ships, while the vessels' landing craft moved supplies between ships and ports in the gulf.

After the equipment was repaired, cleaned and loaded back aboard, the ships left last month for San Diego. On the return voyage, the sailors and Marines visited the Australian cities of Sydney, Townsville, Cairns and Brisbane; Tonga; and Pearl Harbor.

The public will not be allowed on military bases for the homecomings for security reasons.

The ships will be visible from Interstate 5 during offloading near Camp Pendleton.

The public can watch the five ships enter San Diego Bay on Saturday morning from Point Loma, Shelter and Harbor islands, and the Embarcadero.



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James W. Crawley:
(619) 542-4559; jim.crawley@uniontrib.com

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/military/20030724-9999_1mc24boxer.html


Sempers,

Roger
:marine: