U.S. Navy hover crafts transport more than 2,000 tons from shore-to-ship

Photo By Sgt. Austin Long | A landing craft air cushion (LCAC), with Assault Craft Unit Four, Naval Beach Group Two, Expeditionary Strike Group Two, parks aboard the USS Arlington (LPD 24) with approximately 60 tons of cargo in preparation for the Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX) in the Atlantic Ocean, July 19, 2015. Usually the crew would begin to off load its cargo, however, these loads are remaining on the LCAC in case there is need for a quick reaction force to support allied forces or provide humanitarian assistance. The craft remains loaded on the USS Arlington (LPD 24). The LCAC transported over 2,000 tons of cargo and U.S. Marines and sailors with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) and Amphibious Squadron 4 (PHIBRON 4) to three different ships in the Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group in preparation for their participation in the exercise. The 26th MEU and the Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group are conducting COMPTUEX in preparation for a deployment later this fall. (United States Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Austin Long/Released)  

CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA, UNITED STATES

07.23.2015

Story by Sgt. Austin Long 

II Marine Expeditionary Force   

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - Hovering over the water while moving about 40 knots with over 60 tons of equipment on your landing craft can be a hairy situation for most, but for an assault craft crewman it’s just another day and a welcome experience. These sailors are responsible for the movement of equipment and military personnel from ship-to-shore and vice versa.

Sailors with Assault Craft Unit Four, Naval Beach Group Two, Expeditionary Strike Group Two, moved over 2,120 tons, utilizing the landing craft air cushion (LCAC), from Onslow Beach, North Carolina, to various ships within the Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group throughout the Atlantic Ocean, July 16-19.

Over three days, the Little Creek, Virginia-based unit transported 1,300 tons of cargo to the USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), 700 tons of cargo to the USS Oak Hill (LSD 51), and 120 tons of cargo to the USS Arlington (LPD 24).

“I love it just like everyone else,” said Seaman Kyle Dye, a loadmaster with ACU 4. “We are like a family and the respect we have for each other goes a long way. My favorite part is the camaraderie between the crews. It’s still a competition to see which LCAC can move more cargo, but we all have a close bond. My favorite thing to transport is tanks. We moved a lot of tanks the other day and I had a lot of fun; as I do every day with this job.”

The Marines, sailors, and equipment transported from shore-to-ship are participating in the Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX) throughout the Atlantic Ocean. This exercise is being conducted in preparation for the deployment of Marines and sailors with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Amphibious Squadron 4 to the 5th and 6th fleet areas of responsibility later this fall.

The LCAC is a hover-craft that has been used by the U.S. Navy for the last 32 years. With its two 11 foot 9 inch turbines, it produces approximately 16,000 horsepower and can travel at 50 plus knots and to a distance of approximately 300 nautical miles, as well as travel across flat land.

Before the LCAC, the Navy used landing craft units (LCUs) for these types of missions. An LCU is a diesel powered open top craft with a ramp in the front. Although it can transport more weight than the LCAC, it cannot move its cargo as fast or as far inland, which means longer intervals between trips to shore.

Five crewmen, all of them enlisted, maintain and operate the LCAC; each member with a different responsibility, but equally as important. There is the craft master, who drives the craft, the engineer, who is second in charge and assists the craft master with verifying the up-keep and readiness of the craft, the navigator, who navigates the craft, the deck engineer who maintains the deck and its readiness, and the load master who is responsible for loading and off-loading the cargo on the craft.

Throughout the exercise and the deployment, the LCAC will support the 26th MEU by transporting personnel and equipment in support of various ship-to-shore missions.

The LCAC can provide an array of mission support ranging from the movement of cargo to and from, to conducting a modified visit, board, search, and seizure or conducting humanitarian aid missions.

An ACU will usually have between three to five LCACs working together to transfer cargo. In one trip one LCAC can transport 25 personnel normally and 200 if the crew installs the personnel transport module, or PTM, which are metal benches installed to be used for seating, said Petty Officer First Class Bradley Stevens, a gas turbine mechanic with ACU 4, NBG 2.One trip at a time, it can carry 10 armored HMWVVs, or one tank, or four Light-Armored Reconnaissance vehicles.

“I love it. I’ve been doing this for the last 15 years,” said Stevens. “It’s something different every day. You never know what operation or mission will happen, but you always have to be ready to go.”

Maintaining its readiness to support the 26th MEU in operations, the ACU 4 has two LCACs that are pre-staged aboard the USS Arlington and pre-loaded with a diverse range of tactical vehicles that can support a variety of missions.

“They say 10 percent of people in the world love their jobs,” said Stevens. “LCAC crewmen are usually five out of that 10 percent. That’s why we always do it, because we love our job.”

• Date Taken: 07.23.2015
• Date Posted: 07.23.2015 17:39
• Story ID: 170954
• Location: CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA, US