Navy/Marine Corps team bring power to Dynamic Mix 2000
Officially, the exercise starts May 20, but ships have been arriving at this ancient Greek port for the last two weeks.
Dynamic Mix 2000 involves air, land and sea forces and is NATO's largest regional exercise this year. The exercise takes place in three countries and includes 15,000 troops, 65 ships and 290 aircraft from 14 nations. Dynamic Mix uses the full range of NATO's capabilities and illustrates NATO's power in the southern region.
U.S. Marines from the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade are busy off-loading the ship, in conjunction with the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command, Naval Beach Group Two and Naval Cargo Handling And Port Group. They are working around-the clock to bring all the necessary equipment ashore.
"The Marine Corps and the Navy have worked well together to make this operation a success," said Marine Maj. Gen. Robert R. Blackman Jr., the commanding general of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade for the exercise. Overall, there are more than 4,500 Marines participating in the exercise.
SS Eugene A. Obregon is one of four ships in MSC's Maritime Prepositioning Ship Squadron One, which preposition Marine Corps equipment in the Mediterranean. Together, these ships carry enough combat equipment and supplies to support 17,500 Marines for up to 30 days of combat. These forward-deployed ships are a critical part of the U.S. military power projection, enabling the United States to react quickly to everything from potential aggressors to natural disasters.
"The Maritime Prepositioning Force is a viable tool in the Navy's tool box and brings a great deal to the table to assist the Marine Corps.," said Navy Capt. L.F. "Lee" Mahoney, the commander of the Maritime Prepositioning Force for the exercise.
MSC and the Marine Corps first began prepositioning Marine Corps equipment aboard MSC ships in the early 1980s. Since then, the Army, the Air Force, the Navy and the Defense Logistics Agency have also began prepositioning their equipment aboard MSC ships.
The Marine Corps equipment will be moved into the field for live exercises, allowing cross-training and integration with multi-national forces, including the Greeks and the Hungarians. (FROM MILITARY SEALIFT COMMAND-EUROPE, PUBLIC AFFAIRS).
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