The following article is taken from the latest issue of the Globe & Laurel magazine.
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After speaking to the US Coast Guard and being informed that the Target of Interest (TOI) was a semi-submersible submarine, combined with the fact that this would be the first one ever in the central Caribbean, there was a different sort of vibe floating around ship and everyone was excited as they believed this could be a really big bust!
Once all the briefs and updates were given to us, including an update from the US Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment team, ‘away port and starboard sea boats’ was piped, this triggered the final few checks and then the craft were launched from HMS Trent
Once I was released, I waited astern of the ship for Mne Jones to go through the same process. Once in position we held behind the mother ship for about 3nm, keeping us undetected and in a tactical posture. We were about 4nm away from the TOI when we were eventually released. From this point on, we were vectored onto target by receiving bearings from the ship.
We noticed the Maritime Patrol Aircraft flying over the TOI a lot lower than usual. As the distance coming over comms was getting smaller and smaller, the sub was now in sight. We sped up towards the back of it and I nosed onto its port quarter, where the US Coast Guard interpreter jumped on and started banging on the hatch whilst screaming orders in Spanish.
Once the people on the sub had realised that there was law enforcement on top, they swung open the hatch and came out with their hands up. Mne Jones was in a good position to get the detainees straight off the sub, as we knew they could deny it from the inside by pulling its ‘scuttle valve’.
Once given permission, the long night began… We had to transfer the detainees back to HMS Trent for questioning, plus get two tons of contraband and illegal, fully automatic, weapons off. Finally, we went out the next morning with the help from 24 Commando’s Crisis Response Tp to help destroy the sub.
To find out more about 47 Cdo RG RM and further RM activities across the globe, catch up regularly with all the news in the Globe & Laurel Magazine, the Journal of the Royal Marines.
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Globe & Laurel – RMA – The Royal Marines Charity (rma-trmc.org)
