Ship's Boarding Party [Merged]

[andpro]

Does the deckO have to be on the boarding team or does he/she have the choice?

 

[mcdvnav]

Does the deckO have to be on the boarding team or does he/she have the choice?

The CO picks his Boarding Officer. It's an interesting course,  that is worth the time.

 

[andpro]

Is this job a high stress job? Does it replace some of your duties or is it added on to your duties?

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

Is this job a high stress job?

Depends. Every Boarding entails a degree of risk and no two boardings are ever the same

Does it replace some of your duties or is it added on to your duties?

Depends on your ship and manning requirements but for the most part NLBP is a secondary duty along with your primary duties.

.

 

[mcdvnav]

Is this job a high stress job? Does it replace some of your duties or is it added on to your duties?

I just wanted to add something to what Ex- Dragoon said. It's probably the most interesting secondary duty. It requires a lot of work, but it is rewarding.

However, if you're trying to decide between the Navy and the Army. NBP is nothing like being in the infantry. You stand a better chance of going on a peacekeeping mission or other deployment overseas if you join the Army. I know the navy has been involved in many ops, but it's not the same as being in Yugoslavia or Afghanistan.

When I joined I wanted to be involved in a UN mission, the recruiter never mentioned that a MARS officer has very little chance of getting sent on a UN deployment. So, I've been doing my best to find some way to go on a tour, but it hasn't worked out.

Make sure you know what you want before you pick a trade.

 

[FSTO]

I just wanted to add something to what Ex- Dragoon said. It's probably the most interesting secondary duty. It requires a lot of work, but it is rewarding.

However, if you're trying to decide between the Navy and the Army. NBP is nothing like being in the infantry. You stand a better chance of going on a peacekeeping mission or other deployment overseas if you join the Army. I know the navy has been involved in many ops, but it's not the same as being in Yugoslavia or Afghanistan.

When I joined I wanted to be involved in a UN mission, the recruiter never mentioned that a MARS officer has very little chance of getting sent on a UN deployment. So, I've been doing my best to find some way to go on a tour, but it hasn't worked out.

Make sure you know what you want before you pick a trade.

Have you applied for HUMINT? Thats the best way for a MARS officer to get to go in country.

 

[mcdvnav]

Have you applied for HUMINT? Thats the best way for a MARS officer to get to go in country.

I have considered it. I am planning to apply when I complete FNO. I've met several people who've gone to Yugoslavia and Afghan with the HUMINT teams, they say it's a good tour-- hard work.

Have you done it? What have you heard?

 

[FSTO]

I have considered it. I am planning to apply when I complete FNO. I've met several people who've gone to Yugoslavia and Afghan with the HUMINT teams, they say it's a good tour-- hard work.

Have you done it? What have you heard?

No I haven't but the couple of guys I've talked to said that it was a very good tour.

 

[Embarkcuis]

I'm looking into joining the Navy as a reserve NCI OP, I hope my chances to get recruited into the Naval Boarding Party is high, because I really don't want to sit at a desk all day long. 

Say, what's the career outlook for a Naval Boarding Party Member anyway?

 

[Embarkcuis]

so how can someone best position themselve to be selected for enrollment into the boarding party course?

 

[Navy_Blue]

Its completely voluntary.  I think there is one Ops trade they train but never use NCI OP or NIS OP???  They are needed for other duties during a boarding so we only use them when we're desperate.  Other than that every department is expected to provide a member or two or three.  Find out who your boarding officer is and let him know you want on the team.  It can be a lot of work if your operational when I was in the Gulf I wasn't on the team but I watched them do 3+ boardings a day on everything from wooden Dows to freighters.  We caught a freighter smuggling some gun boats into Iraq....the yanks were very interested in that.  Our CO was way to into the guts and glory side of our mission he wanted to "blow things up and kill people."  He was a nut bar. 

Anyways the NBP is a cool secondary duty. I have since taken the course and intend on maintaining it. You need to do and operational boarding or team training at least every 2 years.  I have done a few training boardings on Norwegian ships it was nice to board something other than your own ship.  I'm an ET so a more senior stoker and I go to secure the engineering spaces and control room.  I love it but I know guys that would never do it when they see what we have to do.  Can be allot of standing and allot of crap bc not everyone has the same standards for safety and hygiene.

If you want on the team...most ships you just have to ask.

 

[3rd Herd]

Another perspective of the infamous video and theehing problems. I witnessed some of the first boarding party crse yeah mistakes were made, Sop was still being figured out, unfamiliarity with weapons( us grunts thought this hilarious) BUT a couple years after that on a CF day at Esquimalt I was with my daughter and several of her friends, the young impressionable types, we boarded the Calgary to be met by by a 5 ft FA female in black coveralls, thigh holster, MP5, and shades. Six girls jaws dropped and for the next hour this member provied one of the best briefing on the role of boarding parties, women in the military and any other topic the girls or I could dare to ask. In retrospect she was also the one responsible for interrupting five generations of cbt arms service, my daughter went navy cadet and next year is shooting to be chief of her corps.
Bravo Zulu

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

It depends on your section (whether your NCI-OP/NES-OP) can afford to let you go. Sounds like individual ship policy. As for positioning yourself to get on the course, you should talk to your section but if you're an OS or new crew member on board that ship and you are not qualified I would not be counting on an NBP course any time soon.

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

NBP is a secondary duty and should not be looked upon as a career.

 

[Embarkcuis]

Thanks for the advice Ex-Dragoon.

 

[Navy_Blue]

Yeah the OPS thing must depend on the ship but the info gathering type??? (NES/NCI???)  they like them to be a camera guy on my ship and make the off watch one(s) muster on the bridge.  Ex is right you kinda need your training packages done and be a useful sailor to your trade before they let you go.  Some times bosses are not really keen on loosing you to the team it can take up allot of time at sea and even along side.  If you want your boss happy with you maybe test the Idea out before you go to the boarding officer.  It is voluntary tho.  Good luck.

On the TDV note we watch that video on the NBP course and laughed allot.  Its like a what not to do video for us now.  Allot was learned from OP APOLLO and they have made many changes.  It is still a work in progress and we have become a model to some countries for how they conduct boardings.  The yanks tend to loose allot of people boarding ships with only 3 or 4 guys.  I think in 2002 the US boarded a ship in the gulf and After the crew was locked away in there mess.  The EXO locked one team member in the engine space and killed another on the bridge and sunk there own ship crew and all.  Not a good day.

I'm hoping when the Cyclones are out we might see some more training on Helos.  We might be pretty low on the list of priorities tho.

 

[Embarkcuis]

Oh my...
I knew there was some danger to the job, but I had no idea people actually get locked up and killed on the spot, hopefully not within the Canadian boarder anyway, but I’ve heard all sorts of nasty things coming up from costal smuggling rings and crime syndicate and all that.
The whole thing about going up to another ship, and not knowing if the crews on board had already got you numbered must make the job quite exciting… well I mean, if you’re properly trained to handle whatever comes your way that is.
I don’t seem to remembering reading this one on the news or the websites, has there been any history of boarding party causality in the Canadian Navy?

Thanks for your info by the way 

 

[NavComm]

The yanks tend to loose allot of people boarding ships with only 3 or 4 guys.  I think in 2002 the US boarded a ship in the gulf and After the crew was locked away in there mess.  The EXO locked one team member in the engine space and killed another on the bridge and sunk there own ship crew and all.  Not a good day.

I was interested in this because I don't recall hearing anything in the news. I did a search and found that in November 2001 two crew of the USS Peterson were trapped in a ship they boarded in the Gulf and died:

The Sailors were from USS Peterson (DD 969), a Spruance-class destroyer homeported in Norfolk, Va.

The Peterson had been ordered to board the United Arab Emirates-flagged tanker, M/T Samra. While the Americans were searching the ship, the engineering section began to flood. Two members of the U.S. “sweep team” were trapped and went down with the Samra less than three minutes later.

The cause of the sinking may never be known. It is possible the ship was intentionally scuttled, but those familiar with the vessel say it’s just as likely that the rickety old ship just gave out. Whatever the cause, it points out the fact that boarding operations are difficult, physically challenging and often life-threatening

http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=2109

I wonder if it's the same incident and further details came out after this article (June 2002). I didn't find anything else on boarding parties being shot or killed. Can you give more details?

 

[Navy_Blue]

I don't think they were shot.  The story I heard back then was that the captain and the first mate had something to do with it.  If they were smuggling oil and the yanks new it they would be dropped off in the nearest port (Saudi or Oman) with the harshest sentence (death).  There was before the war potential to make allot of money smuggling oil so much that being an ordinary crew member from India you could live for many years on just one successful job.  If your caught tho it was game over.  I think it was old Sadams way of making extra spending money.

Canadians tend not to do thous boardings.  We're not equipped to break into welded hatch combings and portholes.  They have been known to string barb wire through the mast to stop air insertions too.  We leave thous boarding to the yanks unless its in our waters. 

They showed us a few horror story videos of Helos crashing, guys falling in holds, guys dropping dead in holds with no air (all USN, USCG).  Pretty scary if you think about it.  Its a dangerous job and they don't give you extra pay.  I'm not saying they should get extra pay all the time either but when your operational in the gulf it would be nice.  Bubble heads get Dive pay, Submariners get Sub pay.

In our navy I don't think there has been any casualties recently.  We've been very lucky I know the people who train us have tested our life vests against the weight we carry and they could just keep there chins above water in a pool (they're working on it ).  with a big ship right beside you and its screws behind you it wouldn't be fun.  I think most of us understand what happens if you fall off the ladder on the ship.  We have a diver with us on the RHIB but if your already sinking.

All in all I love it its a bit of a rush racing over to a ship in the RHIB with your MP5 your feel pretty cool.

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

Lets try and keep hearsay out of it and relay facts. As for non compliant boardings we have done a few, and if the folks at Sea Div are right, we are being trained for those types of Ops more and more.