tip of the spear (pdf) - The Air Commando Association

Tip of the Spear
36
By Naval Special Warfare
East Public Affairs
Special Warfare Boat
Operators from Special Boat
Team 20 reached a
milestone in April
when they successfully
completed the 100th
and 101st insertion
of the Maritime
Craft Aerial
Deployment
System off the
coast of North
Carolina.
Serving as a true force
multiplier, the MCADS capability
enables Naval Special Warfare Sailors to
rapidly deploy anywhere in the world in
a maritime environment.
The system deploys an 11-meter
RIB rigged with four large parachutes
from the back of a C-130 or C-17 flying
at approximately 3500 feet. Special
Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen
(SWCC) immediately follow the boat
out of the plane and parachute to the
immediate proximity of where the boat
lands. Within 20 minutes the SWCCs
will have the boat unpacked and rigged
to get underway to deliver an element of
SOF operators to any potential target of
interest, or to conduct their own
mission.
SBT-20 Command Master Chief
Richard Evans pointed out that this
capability didn’t just miraculously
evolve.
“This capability is a direct result of
countless hours of hard work and
commitment from several Sailors in the
command’s air operations department
over the past decade. In particular, the
air department head, Chief Steve Perry,
the MCADS program manager for SBT-
20, Shane Hollar, and all the members
of the Air Department, have been the
backbone for the success of the program
for the past several years,” Evans said.
Although the MCADS capability
hasn’t been operationally required yet,
ensuring the proficiency of the SBs and
reliability of the equipment is essential
for regional combatant commanders to
know its ready when needed.
All of the equipment and SWCCs
were flawless in both MCADS drops for
this exercise. Following the MCADS
drops, Marines from nearby units
practiced their water insertion
techniques from a Marine CH-46. The
SBT-20 boats immediately recovered the
Marines and continued on with
scheduled joint exercises in the area.
As U.S. Special Operations
Command celebrates their 20th
anniversary this year, this capability is a
great example of how the various
service component special operations
force elements continue to evolve in
their interoperability.
SBT-20’s commanding officer,
Cmdr. Kent Paro, cites this as a great
example of the qualities essential to
Naval Special Warfare Sailors being
successful. “The experience of
conducting an evolution as dynamic as
an MCADS drop and having the mental
agility to put that behind you, refocus,
link-up with sister-service operators and
conduct a SOF mission is invaluable.
Time and again it’s the professionalism,
focused dedication, and intellect
enabling our NSW Sailors to succeed
every day on the battlefield and while
conducting operations around the
world,” said Paro.