USS Tarawa Conducts Damage Control Portion of ULTRA-S

Photo By Chief Petty Officer Daniel Barker | Sailors, donned in firefighting gear, listen to the ship's general announcing system in the hangar bay of amphibious assault ship USS Tarawa (LHA 1) during a general quarters scenario. General quarters is an all hands emergency drill that was held aboard Tarawa as part of Unit Level Training Assessment-Sustainment. ULTRA-S is a biannual graded evaluation of the ship's proficiency in many different warfare areas. Tarawa and the embarked 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility. Operating in the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean, the U.S. 7th Fleet is the largest of forward deployed U.S. fleets, with approximately 50 ships, 120 aircraft, and 20,000 Sailors and Marines assigned at any given time. (Navy photo/Petty Officer 3rd Class Daniel A. Barker)  

05.01.2008

Courtesy Story

U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / U.S. 5th Fleet           

By Petty Officer 3rd Class Daniel Barker
USS Tarawa Public Affairs Officer

INDIAN OCEAN – Afloat Training Group Pacific (ATGPAC) inspectors from San Diego assessed amphibious assault ship USS Tarawa (LHA 1) during its biannual Unit Level Training Assessment-Sustainment (ULTRA-S), on April 24-26.

ULTRA-S damage control inspections must be completed every six months in order for U.S. Navy ships to keep their damage control certifications.

"Tarawa's performance with the various drills and scenarios was outstanding," said Damage Controlman Chief Jimmy Bailey. "Each of the last three inspections made improvements over the previous inspection."

Sailors aboard were tested with scenarios ranging from a main space fire drill and a toxic gas leak to class alpha fires and a simulated helicopter crash on the flight deck. They were trained and ready for the scenarios ATGPAC assessed during the ULTRA-S inspection.

"With recent [personnel] transitions, we had to operate these drills with reduced manning and the additional challenge of training more people. We were still able to sustain a closer percentage within plus or minus ten percentage points to sustain certification," explained Bailey.

The shipwide drills involved a majority of the nearly 1,200 Sailors aboard Tarawa including all seven repair lockers.

"When we heard that there was an inbound missile port side during the drill, we had to quickly brace for shock on the appropriate side of the passageway," said Yeoman 2nd Class Matthew Hoover. "After only a moments hesitation we all responded correctly. If this had been an actual event we would know what to do."

The ULTRA-S drills lasted three days, but the realistic scenarios played out by the Tarawa crew during the inspections will keep them ready for any casualty the ship may encounter during its deployment to the Western Pacific.

Tarawa is the flag ship of the USS Tarawa Expeditionary Strike Group. While on deployment, Tarawa Expeditionary Strike Group has provided support to Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom; taken part in operations in the Horn of Africa; provided disaster relief and humanitarian assistance to Bangladesh in the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Sidr; and conducted Maritime Security Operations (MSO) in the Persian Gulf.

Tarawa is currently operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility. The U.S. 7th Fleet is the largest of the forward-deployed U.S. Fleets covering 52 million square miles, with approximately 50 ships, 120 aircraft and 20,000 Sailors and Marines assigned at any given time.

• Date Taken: 05.01.2008
• Date Posted: 05.01.2008 22:08
• Story ID: 19023