NavWeek: Riders Of The Storm

As U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Richard Simcock acknowledges, when anyone mentions the number-one-country of  concern in the Asia Pacific, everyone knows which one it is.

But, China syndrome aside, there’s a much greater and immediate worry in the region.

“The number-one threat in the Pacific is Mother Nature,” Simcock says.

While Chinese and U.S. forces have rattled each other’s cages in recent years, neither has had to launch a major amphibious operation against the other in the way the American Navy and Marine Corps has had to deal with natural disasters in the Asia Pacific.

It can be just as daunting to land a military force ashore during a disaster as during a military conflict. And there’s a much greater call for disaster relief missions than any kind of assault on Chinese territories.  When critics argue against funding amphibious forces, the point is made that America hasn’t needed to carry off such assaults for decades. But that’s no longer the case.

U.S. amphibious ambitions are much more grounded in reality these days –- in a way that will help bolster the Asia Pacific rebalance. Nations in the region are more likely to embrace American ships, aircraft and intentions if they revolve around helping people instead of invading their homeland.

So it makes more sense that that the U.S. should continue to train the way it fights, whether the battle is against Mother Nature or part of a geopolitical crisis.

A case in point is Bold Alligator 2014. The two-week, annual multinational exercise held off the U.S. East Coast earlier this month was hosted by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps to help build muscle in amphibious operations and bilateral cooperation,

For this year’s exercise and scenario, amphibious landings, humanitarian assistance, long-range reinforcement of a U.S. embassy, tactical recovery of aircraft and personnel and amphibious raids were just some of the operations scheduled, with most events occurring “with little to no warning,” the official exercise guide says.

In previous years,  Simcock noted during an interview aboard amphibious assault ship LHD 3 USS Kearsarge, Bold Alligator focused on “forcible” entry –- launching aircraft, sea-craft and other weapons to go where U.S. forces were not exactly welcome.

This year’s exercise, though, with its focus on cooperation and coordination as much as command and control, showed the real power of U.S. amphibious operations –- the ability to shape events, hopefully for the better, by being at the right place, at the right time, with the right force used the right way.