tional, however only one berth can be used at a time due to the capacity of the pipeline providing its oil," says Lieut. (j.g.) Blair Milo, assigned to Commander Destroyer Squadron FIFTY at Bahrain. Renovations to the platforms have been funded by the Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund and administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Gulf Region Division. Improvements to ABOT include a new and highly accurate ultrasonic and turbo metering system, refurbishment of the loading arms and rigging, as well as fusible loop fire detection, gas detection, emergency shut down systems, nitrogen generation and installation of life rafts. Crude is pumped to the ABOT via by a 48-in. undersea pipeline from the southernmost tip of Iraq's Al Faw Peninsula, the terminal has four berths capable of handling very large carrier type vessels and offloading 300,000400,000 barrels per day on each berth. ABOT is 10 nautical miles from shore and KAAOT is 5 nm. "Typically the terminal managers send the smaller tankers to KAAOT. It's nowhere near as busy as ABOT, and generally receives a ship around once every other week," Milo says. There is almost always a hazy horizon here. Nevertheless, from KAAOT, one can see dozens of dhows, the wooden boats common in the gulf, used for fishing and trading. Not much further away is the notorious "Sunken Crane," a landmark and a staging location for small boats from the Islamic Republic of Iran Revolutionary Guards Navy (IRGCN). Iran and Iraq dispute where the boarder is between the two countries where the Tigris and Euphrates rivers empty into the gulf at the Shat-al-Arab waterway. "Yesterday you couldn't see anything," said Lieut. Will Best, originally from Nashville, Tenn., referring to the sand storm that cancelled flight and boat operations. "Everything was red. It was like Mars." Coalition naval units maintain a vigorous patrol in sectors around the platforms. While the dhows are not considered a threat, the coalition doesn't allow any unauthorized traffic to get too close. Glance up at the horizon from anywhere on either platform and you will see a coalition patrol vessel. During my visit, the force included the Australian frigate HMAS Stuart (FFH 153); USS Firebolt (PC 10); USS Whirlwind (PC 11); USCGC Maui (WPB 1304); USCGC Adak (WPB 1333); flagship HMS Chatham (F87) as well as Iraqi Navy patrol boats.
August 2008
USS Firebolt, with PC Crew Bravo aboard, based in Little Creek, Va., is one of the key combatants patrolling the area in the North Arabian Gulf to protect the vital oil platforms here. Lieut. (j.g.) Bryan Kendris is the executive officer. "Our job is to patrol our sector and keep the dhows out." Patrolling is usually done at moderate speeds, as it is doing now on just one of its four main engines, although the 330-ton Firebolt can achieve speeds in excess of 30 knots with all four engines operating. Firebolt is well armed, with a MK 96 25mm chain gun amidships, .50 cal. machine guns-with an effective range of about two miles-and M240 7.62mm machine guns on the bridge wings. "It pumps out a lot of firepower," says Lieut. (j.g.) Mike Beer, the weapons officer, referring to the chain gun. But more frequently the ships employ non-lethal means to keep craft away from the platforms. Commanding officer Lt. Trent Thompson says Firebolt can warn vessels with five short blasts of the ship's whistle, then the Long-Range Acoustic Device, or LRAD. "The LRAD tone is what works best," says Kendris. "Some times they can't hear the Arabic phrases and try to get closer to understand. That kind of defeats the purpose." We also can fire 'cracker rounds,' like firing an M80 firecracker out of a shotgun. It makes a big flash and a loud noise," Thompson says. "It can get someone's attention." "The fishermen out here don't have any navigation aids or GPS, so they can easily get into our sector without knowing it. Some of the dhows have bridgeto-bridge radios. But they don't answer to English. They aren't trying to cause any trouble. They're just here to fish," Beer says. "We send boarding teams over, and we give them water and first aid kits." The Firebolt crew can employ a device called a Phrasalator which can play selected phrases in Arabic. The reply is then recorded and translated to English. "We also have cards with basic phrases in Arabic," Beer says. "My goal out here is to bring some southern hospitality to these guys," says Thompson, a Durham, N.C. native, referring to the numerous dhows in the area. "They're just out here fishing." About the Author Lundquist is a senior science advisor with Alion Science and Technology and chairs the SNA Public Relations Committee.
Coalition forces, including USS Firebolt (PC 10) provide security for the OPLATs. (Edward H. Lundquist photo)
An LRAD set-up on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. (Photo courtesy of Anchor Innovations [www.anchori.com, Email: spalmer@anchori.com], an authorized LRAD Distributor for American Technology Corporation) 27
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