Showing posts with label Persian Gulf. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Persian Gulf. Show all posts

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Navy stops searching for missing Marine Cpl. Jordan L. Spears

Navy IDs Marine lost in Persian Gulf; search called off
Stars and Stripes
By Hendrick Simoes
Published: October 3, 2014

MANAMA, Bahrain — The U.S. Navy on Friday identified the missing U.S. Marine who is presumed lost at sea after he bailed out of an MV-22 Osprey when it lost power after taking off from the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island.

The U.S. Navy ended the search Thursday in the northern Persian Gulf for Cpl. Jordan L. Spears, 21, of Memphis, Ind., who embarked on the Makin Island as part the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit. He was a tiltrotor crew chief working with the 11th MEU's aviation combat element. He was assigned to I Marine Expeditionary Force and based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif.

Spears was one of two aircrew members who went into the water Wednesday when it seemed the Osprey might crash. The other aircrew member was rescued and is in stable condition aboard the Makin Island, officials said.

The Osprey’s pilot was able to regain control of the aircraft and return to the ship. The Navy said the plane was participating in flight operations to support the military’s mission in Iraq and Syria.
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Sunday, October 30, 2011

U.S. Planning Troop Buildup in Gulf After Exit From Iraq

U.S. Planning Troop Buildup in Gulf After Exit From Iraq
By THOM SHANKER and STEVEN LEE MYERS
Published: October 29, 2011

MacDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. — The Obama administration plans to bolster the American military presence in the Persian Gulf after it withdraws the remaining troops from Iraq this year, according to officials and diplomats. That repositioning could include new combat forces in Kuwait able to respond to a collapse of security in Iraq or a military confrontation with Iran.

The plans, under discussion for months, gained new urgency after President Obama’s announcement this month that the last American soldiers would be brought home from Iraq by the end of December. Ending the eight-year war was a central pledge of his presidential campaign, but American military officers and diplomats, as well as officials of several countries in the region, worry that the withdrawal could leave instability or worse in its wake.

After unsuccessfully pressing both the Obama administration and the Iraqi government to permit as many as 20,000 American troops to remain in Iraq beyond 2011, the Pentagon is now drawing up an alternative.
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Saturday, August 1, 2009

The Pirate Hunters Marines return to Camp Pendleton

Pirate-chasing Marines return to Camp Pendleton
2:40 PM July 31, 2009


The official nickname of Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 267 is "The Stingers."

But for the seven-month deployment with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit that ended in a joyous homecoming Friday at Camp Pendleton, the squadron had a new name: "The Pirate Hunters."

Flying off the amphibious assault ship Boxer, the squadron's Hueys and Cobras chased pirates in the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Aden, and the waters off Somali. The presence of the loud and heavily armed helos gave warning to the pirates to leave the merchant ships alone.


Capt. John Geisler told his wife via e-mail to watch for the Jolly Roger flag in the cockpit window of his Cobra. And so when Tristan Geisler, 28, spotted the needle-nosed chopper as it landed and taxied into position, she let out a shout.
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