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Inshore Boat Unit 17 Returns Home After A Six Month Deployment To Kuwait
Story Number: NNS030627-15
Release Date: 6/27/2003 4:44:00 PM
By Operations Specialist 2nd Class Sharad R. Venugopal, Inshore Boat Unit 17 Public Affairs
NEW ORLEANS (NNS) -- Inshore Boat Unit (IBU) 17, part of the Navy coastal warfare force, will return home after completing a six-month deployment to Kuwait with the Global Counter-Terrorism Task Force in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The San Diego-based Naval Reserve unit mobilized just prior to Christmas 2002, after a previous mobilization following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Upon return, 36 members of the unit will demobilize and go back to their civilian occupations.
During deployment, IBU-17 was assigned the critical task of protecting coalition ships carrying combat equipment. Unlike combat troops, who are flown into the theater of operation, heavy combat equipment is shipped by huge vessels, each capable of carrying more than 1,000 pieces of equipment. Navy and Coast Guard patrol boats provided constant protection for these ships, patrolling continuously during offload operations and escorting them in and out of port.
IBU-17 unit commanding officer Lt. Cmdr. Chris Brown said, “The importance of our mission during the pre-combat and combat phases of Operation Iraqi Freedom cannot be overstated.” Brown added, “It was one of the missions that simply could not fail, no matter what.”
IBU-17 and their Corpus Christi counterpart, IBU-15, were assigned to protect the primary Sea Port of Debarkationor, where more than 90 percent of the combat equipment used in the war was offloaded. Throughout dust storms, extreme temperatures and several Iraqi missile attacks, IBU-17 maintained presence on the water, protecting vital ships and deterring attack from hostile forces. The two IBU detachments conducted more than 9,000 hours of patrols and 500 escort operations.
The Sailors were proud to play a key role in bringing down Saddam Hussein’s regime, which liberated the Iraqi people.
“The stage was set after 9-11. IBU-17 went on a journey that took them around three-quarters of the world," Engineman 1st Class Jay Duenas said. "The unit was given a mission to fight against terrorist attacks that affected each one of our lives at home and abroad.”
Even as crew members head home for a summer return to their daily routines, they stand ready to answer the next call to defend America’s freedoms, wherever and whenever that may be.
For related news, visit the Commander Naval Reserve Force Navy NewsStand page at www.news.navy.mil/local/nrf.
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