NAVY NEWS, MAY 2010

Boarding

Caribbean as well. He is, of course, referring to the

school

“THIS is our main effort when it comes to sending a ship east of Suez,” Maj Matt Hood says emphatically.

And – he might add – the

‘B’ word: boardings. The offi cial term is ‘maritime security operations’,

nutshell it’s changed little since the days of Nelson or the Altmark: sailors and marines with weapons climbing ladders or swinging on ropes to gain access to another vessel.

And if you were to ask ‘what does the Navy do?’ 21st Century,

then

operations’ probably sums up the global mission better than anything else: there’s always an RN presence at the tip of the Gulf and in the Indian Ocean, most of the time too in the Caribbean. “It’s a sailor’s duty to

board,” says Maj Matt Hood emphatically. “The nation expects its boarding teams to be fi t and trained for the job.” The Royal Marine of Assault Group should

1 in the ‘boarding but in a

prisoner, they can call on their knowledge of capture’ training.

And should a team be taken ‘conduct after

“Boarding teams are prone to capture, that much is very clear,” says Maj Hood. “They used to be shown a DVD – basically it was Ray Mears in a wood making fi res. Now they do two days of training at St Mawgan.” That’s home to the guys who Survive,

teach Evade, Resist

and Extraction (SERE) skills to downed aircrew among others

(think Behind Enemy Lines).

“If you tell people that they could be captured, they quickly realise that what they’re getting into is a serious business,” the Major adds. It’s not just the boarding

party who now pass through the BSS, but also the operations room team, the ship’s fl ight and the CO.

know. He was charged with a comprehensive review of RN boarding training to ensure that it meets current requirements. Three years down the line he’s adamant that there’s been “a real shake-up” in the way boarding teams are trained.

The commando looked at other forces regularly conducting boarding operations on the seven seas, notably the Aussies – “their kit isn’t as good, but there were some skills that we needed to improve” and the US Coast Guard – “very good indeed”. Incorporating some of those

experiences, plus “the best of green and blue”, the root-and-branch overhaul of boarding training is now in place at the Board and Search School, 1 AGRM, based at HMS Raleigh. A few basic facts about boarding

operations. There are three types:

■ compliant (the skipper allows a boarding party aboard); ■ non-compliant (the skipper doesn’t want a boarding party aboard); ■ opposed (the crew will use force to prevent anyone coming aboard).

only done ‘compliant’. Anything stronger requires the green berets. “But the real world isn’t quite like that,” says Maj Hood. “A compliant boarding can escalate into a non-compliant for any number of reasons” “It’s no good suddenly ‘Royal, can you

saying:

help?’” the green beret adds.

Traditionally, RN sailors have

Ronnie Biggs, Offi cer in Charge Board and Search School. “It’s no longer a case of: ‘Boarding offi cer, crack on.’” Two years ago, the 15 sailors

would arrive twice a month at the BSS for a four/fi ve-day course. The planning board in the offi ce would have gaps of two or three weeks at a time between courses. Not any more. “There’s barely a free week all year,” Ronnie points out. Before there’s any thought of boarding, there are two days of naval military skills tests – physical tests, weapon handling tests, the ability to climb a rope and move quickly and aggressively around a ship wearing the correct weapons and equipment. There’s greater emphasis on weapons handling, boat skills, signals and communications, fi rst aid, and above all, working as a team. “Unless you do this as a whole

do the course,”

“Commanding Offi cers says Lt

ship, you’re going to get it wrong,” says Lt Biggs bluntly.

His Chief of Board and Search, CPO Ian Elsdon, adds: “You see the biggest difference working as a team from day one through to day 20, seeing people gel together.” The team gelling this

week are mostly from HMS Northumberland… about to head east of Suez.

ops,

NMT before, such as LLogs Elisa Robertson. “Four weeks training instead of one has to be better,” she says. “But this course is also a lot more hands-on.

pictures: dave sherfi eld, hms raleigh

“A boarding team must be able to deal with an escalating situation. They must be able to deal with any form of escalation from aggressive crew members to close-quarters armed action.” So where once the boarding team courses lasted one week, now they run to four – two weeks for training individual skills and two weeks for training as a team. Where once sailors conducted perhaps three practice boardings, now they perform a dozen – not as many as the Royals, admittedly, but a big step in the right direction.

gives you a lot more practical experience.” If the new course if tough, Maj Hood makes no apology. “You have to be fast, aggressive, purposeful,” he says.

always been at the heart of the reason that this nation has marines and sailors and we all have to be at the top of our game; that’s what this is about – being the best at what we do.”

“Boarding on the high seas has

fi tness. On the old course, we didn’t do any shooting, this time we do.” Her shipmate AB Karl Chaloner adds: “It’s important to do things as an entire ship – not just your own part of the ship. This training

much greater emphasis on There’s

Some are new to boarding others have been through Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48