Ukraine: BSF Trains Boarding Parties for Joint Exercises

Black Sea Fleet (BSF) Marine Brigade trains boarding parties within anti-terror teams to participate in international activities. If needed, they would have to board a suspect vessel and examine it.

Training process is held in several stages. The first one implies selection of candidates to a boarding party. It depends on conclusions of medical board, psychologists, and proficiency of servicemen.

A boarding team is normally led by an officer or highly experienced non-commissioned. Such party consists of 7-10 marines including interpreter perfectly speaking foreign languages. There are certain language-speaking requirements to other members as well.

To perform their duties properly, marines attend learn international legal norms and practice on vessels moored in Sevastopol.

Taking into account experience acquired by BSF servicemen at the Active Endeavour joint anti-terror operation held in the Mediterranean, boarding groups are equipped with standard and special arms and up-to-date communication. To improve arms-wielding skills, marines have additional fire drills and tactical training. Hand-to-hand combat is also trained at drills.

In 2011, BSF marines participated in 11 long-range cruises and secured ships passing narrow waters and moored in foreign ports. They had good ship-search practice at the IONIEX 2011 Russian-Italian naval exercise and during activations of the BLACKSEAFOR joint task group. For that purposes, over 120 servicemen were trained in BSF Marine Brigade.

Marines will continue practice at sea in the current year. The nearest task will be providing security to BSF large landing ship Caesar Kunikov which is to take part in BLACKSEAFOR activation in Apr 2012 under command of BSF representative. Expectedly, at least 100 marines would be qualified to attend boarding parties in 2012.

[mappress]
Naval Today Staff , January 18, 2012