So Others May Live Exercise Tarpon Springs, A Warfighting Skills Exercise Created by Aicrewmen for Aircrewmen By AWSCS Matthew Estep, USN, CHSCWL
preparation for maritime personnel recovery dominance within the Strategic Power Competition. The Fall 2023 Tarpon Springs was the sixth and most robust iteration yet, encompassing unit elements from the 1st Marine Division supported by elements of 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion based out of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, surface elements from Assault Craft Unit 4 based out of Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Virginia, E-2 fixed wing elements from the “Seahawks” of VAW-126, and MH-60S rotary wing elements from the “Dragon Whales” of HSC-28 and the “Fleet Angels” of HSC-2. This iteration of Tarpon Springs was conducted over two days and was centered around
A Rescue Swimmer and SAR Medical Technician insert to the deck of a simulated stricken LCAC. Photo by MCSN Marie Rosales, USN
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ften in the Rotary Wing Community, challenges arise when it comes to training for a current or future mission. More often than not, the mission is identified as something that needs training for proficiency, but opportunities to conduct that training are few and far between. Commander Helicopter Sea Combat Wing Atlantic (CHSCWL) Senior Enlisted Aircrewmen decided to do something about it, and Exercise Tarpon Springs was born. In 2019, a small group of Senior MH-60S Enlisted Aircrewmen identified prior to the hurricane season that should a Humanitarian Assistance Disaster Relief (HADR) or a Defense Support of Civil Authorities (DSCA) mission arise, helicopter crews throughout CHSCWL would respond to situations in which regular training did not address the skills needed to effectively operate and save lives in a disaster situation. The Senior Enlisted Aircrewmen proposed a training exercise to focus on these tangible skill sets to better prepare our community for maritime personnel recovery in a dynamic environment. This proposed exercise was dubbed “Tarpon Springs.” The initial Tarpon Springs Exercise was aimed solely at terminal area tactics in confined areas that would potentially be encountered such as live hoisting from treetops, live insertion of rescue Aircrewmen into small areas with multiple obstacles surrounding the insertion zone, and in water recovery operations in high current areas. Over the years, Tarpon Springs evolved from practicing skills aimed at HADR / DSCA operations to spearheading our community’s Rotor Review #162 Fall '23
Flight crews practice recovery of Rescue Aircrewmen from a simulated Confined Area during Tarpon Spring’s inaugural exercise. Photo by MCSN Marie Rosales, USN
a multi-day beach assault by Marine units supported by various Naval elements. The exercise took place on October 3rd and 4th and was divided between Onslow Beach, North Carolina, and the northern areas of the Chesapeake Bay. Day One of Tarpon Springs was centered around a simulated LCAC assault and water survivor recovery exercises. While infilling Marines to the beach, the LCAC simulated striking a mine that critically damaged the vessel and caused 42
