31 October 2002

As I write this letter, members of the ship's naval boarding party are in the process of boarding a freighter which is positioned about 100 yards off our port bow. The ship is an ocean going cargo vessel with cargo from Asia. We intercepted the vessel just after midnight and tracked it throughout the night as it manoeuvred along the Iranian coast within Iranian territorial waters. These waters serve as a safe haven for ships not wishing to interact with coalition warships; therefore it is common for them to hug the Iranian coastline and transit at night. Unfortunately for them, there is an area near the Straits of Hormuz where navigation becomes unsafe for larger ships due to water depth. The ships are forced to leave the protection of the Iranian territorial waters for a number of miles thus making them vulnerable for boarding by a Coalition ship. Today we are that Coalition ship. We have just learned that this vessel's destination is Iraq. The cargo visible on the top deck suggests the vessel may be in violation of a United Nations Security Council Resolution, which limits the imports of specific materials into the nation of Iraq. Even to the uninformed on-looker, it is apparent that the 24 meter boats piggybacked on the top of the vessel are extremely similar to those employed by nations as navy patrol boats.

For the past month we have been accustomed to Leadership Interdiction Operations under the auspices of a U.S.-led coalition, where we were looking for "people-smuggling" activity; however this time we are boarding the vessel under the authority of the United Nations. The legalities associated with this circumstance are the reasons why we have a military lawyer on board to advise the Commodore. Although it is still early morning, the Naval Boarding Team is wide-awake and pumped with energy. As they await their turn to board the zodiac for the journey to the freighter, the conversation is wry with "what-if" scenarios. They are armed, professional and take their responsibilities seriously. It must be intimidating for the Freighter's crew as they watch this team speed across the waves toward their ship.

It has been approximately one month since I last sent you an update discussing our activities here in the Persian Gulf region. We arrived on station in the Gulf of Oman in early October, shortly after terrorists off the coast of Yemen attacked a French tanker. Our Ship had been very near that position only two days earlier. The recent terrorists acts that have occurred throughout the world over the past few weeks have set the tone of our deployment. The Commodore aboard our ship, who is in command of our Naval Coalition Task Group, had two nephews in Bali who narrowly escaped being killed by the explosion earlier this month. This brings our cause even closer to home.

In executing our duty we have conducted a number of boardings since our arrival and each vessel presents a unique scenario: be it a 30 ft "barely-sea-worthy" fishing boat stacked full with whiskey, or a 500 ft freighter who's master does not have all his paper work in order. One boarding involved a cargo dhow that was resisting our requests for information.

When it was decided that this dhow should be boarded, the master of the ship continued to remain non-compliant with our ship's requests. The Commanding Officer directed the helicopter to close in and assist. As we came into a hover beside the vessel's bridge (with our machine gun mounted) 18 crewmen appeared out of the ships holds and scrambled to the ship's focsle ready to cooperate. Even the ship's helmsman left the wheel in haste, thus allowing the vessel to wander from its course.

The missions of the helicopter vary from day to day. For the past few weeks we have been tasked with early dawn patrols, which means a 0530 crew brief, followed by crew and aircraft preps for a 0700 launch. Once we depart the ship we begin building a surface plot of the vessels within the range of our radar. We report the location of our radar contacts and begin a systematic process of identifying each vessel. The identification process is simple.... we fly near the vessel and read it's name. If it is determined that further information is required, which is often the case, then we contact the ship's master on FM radio and ask a series of questions concerning ship's cargo, port of departure, destination, etc. This process is called a "hailing". A typical hailing will take proximately five to ten minutes depending on the language skills of the officer we are talking to. Much of the merchant traffic is made up of oil tankers. A few days ago we hailed an oil tanker filled to the brim... it was absolutely enormous. It was over four football fields long... with a dead weight of 316,000 metric tons.... it was awesome just watching it plough through the water.

Some of you may wonder what a "dhow" is. It is something I knew little about before coming to this area. With a relatively large number of countries in relatively close proximity to each other, the main method for transportation is the "cargo dhow". Dhows are the 18-wheelers of the Middle East. They are approximately 120 feet long with wooden hulls. They are difficult to describe. They look like a smaller version of Capt Hook's pirate ship without the sail. Before motors were invented, these boats would have been equipped to sail; however very few now carry the masts to hold sails. Today they cruise throughout the Gulf region with inboard motors using inexpensive Arabian fuel. Their cargo covers the full spectrum of merchandise, from soya beans to livestock. The odd dead cow or goat floating 60 miles from shore indicates not all cargo reaches its destination. For most of the dhows we have been in contact with, their destination is Somalia.

There is one type of vessel that is also a common method of transportation here that we call a "Go-Fast". This is a 20-ft open aluminium boat with a large outboard motor attached. It cruises across the waves at speeds in excess of 20 mph. They are used as taxis, to move people, as well as fishing boats. Because they are so small, they are difficult to identify on radar. These are the boats that cause us the greatest concern, especially during transits through the Straits of Hormuz where land closes in on us from both sides. The Straits can become quite congested with Go-Fast traffic between Iran and Oman. The recent attack on the French tanker and the attack two years ago on the USS Cole has demonstrated that small-boats laden with explosives is a terrorist 'preferred' method for attacking ships at sea.

During the Straits transits the helicopter serves as a rapid response vehicle. We patrol ahead of the ship and when these Go-Fasts appear we fly over to determine whether or not they are a threat; and if necessary we serve as a "blocker" to prevent the boat from closing in on our ship. These types of missions can be busy. Our mission for the aircraft also involves flying ashore, for a variety of reasons. Last week I flew ashore to pick up some VIPs who were here from Canada. We have also done medical evacuations for injured sailors who require medical attention beyond what is available on the ship.

Flying in United Arab Emirates is quite an experience. The terrain on the East coast is extremely rugged with barren mountains up to 3600 feet. The terrain quickly drops off to pure desert. We often see camels wandering the sand dunes. The country is very wealthy; therefore the infrastructure is new and modern. The city of Dubai is amazing in that it appears to have been built within the past ten years by architects that had unlimited budgets. After a closer look you can still find the 'old' world characteristics that us 'Westerners' imagine when we think of Arab nations. In the city centre is an enormous mall. The design and architecture of this mall is similar to any large new mall in Canada. It compares, for example, to the Scarborough town centre in Toronto, or even the West Edmonton Mall in Alberta.

Yesterday we had a rare and interesting mission ashore. We had to drop off a senior officer at a local airport. Before we left, the ships Executive Officer arranged for 110 pizzas (Pizza Hut) to be waiting for us at the airport. Well, we picked them up and were able to deliver 108 warm pizzas back to the ship for dinner. I wasn't sure they were all going to fit into the aircraft... but we managed. According to the members of the ship, never before has the Sea King's serviceability been so important. I cannot imagine what would have happened to my crew had we landed back onboard without those pizzas!

We have had a number of reporters on board over the past weeks. Everyone from Mike Blanchfield with Southam News to Bob Arnot with NBC(MS). We have treated them all well and the favour has been returned in their reporting. Members of the ship take pride in reading about the ship. The impact on morale resulting from these stories has been significant.

In closing I wish to mention a story involving my daughter Brianna who is nine. Yesterday I received an email from the grade four class at Eaglewood Elementary in Bedford... Brianna's class. They have shown an interest in what I have been up to, so I have been sending them tales of my adventure. In the email they proudly described the "Memory Wall" that they have built in their classroom as a tribute to Remembrance Day. As a homework assignment each child was given the task of investigating their family's background to determine if they had any relatives who have served in wars. They then placed these names on their Memory Wall. In a move that caught me off-guard, the class also decided that Brianna's Dad's name should be on the wall in respect for what I am doing over here. It was decided that every child who has a parent serving in the military should put their parent's name on the wall... "so we can show that we appreciate what they do for our country".

Over the past weeks I have been accumulating a list of all the "good" that has come from me being involved in this mission. I use it to help me rationalize to myself why I am spending six months away from Cindy and the kids. When I finished reading that email from Brianna's class, I was able to sit down and add another line to that list.

Major Colin Murray
Detachment Commander
HMCS Montreal