THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, March 16, 1996 TAG: 9603160347
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: Operation Joint Endeavor: Bosnia
SOURCE: BY JACK DORSEY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ABOARD THE GUAM LENGTH: Medium: 96 lines
Col. M. W. Forbush would like nothing more for his Marines than to send them ashore into a good fight.
That's what Marines train for, after all.
But, like those from the previous unit who were never called during their six months at sea - much of it off the coast of the former Yugoslavia - the 2,000-member 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit from Camp Lejeune, N.C., must wait and wait.
``You cannot push things ashore until they ask for them,'' said Forbush, aboard the Norfolk-based amphibious assault ship Guam. ``Marines aren't going ashore until asked.''
Until then, they must be content with being the ``911 reserve force'' to NATO's implementation forces.
With no regular daily mission, such as the carrier George Washington has when flying air patrols over Bosnia, the Marines are constantly looking for training opportunities ashore.
Some have been able to spend a few days rope repelling in Spain. Others recently went to nearby Albania with their snow shoes to train on the mountain slopes.
Most, however, must be content to sail in what the Navy calls a ``box'' in the Adriatic Sea, basically steaming in the same place for weeks while remaining close to the coast.
Working with the Guam are the dock landing ships Portland and Tortuga and the amphibious transport dock Trenton, all from Norfolk.
``We just try to keep busy with training,'' said Cpl. Brian Chontosh, 21, of Rochester, N.Y.
Typically, he and the other Marines aboard the Guam are awake at 6 a.m. They shower, dress and head for breakfast by 6:30. By 7:30 they're in platoon-size physical-training classes. At 10 a.m. squad leaders give individual training. About noon they break for chow.
Afternoons consist of company-size training, classes, weapons handling, honing skills. By 4:30 they knock off for dinner and the night is pretty much their own, except for those on fire watch, chow duties or taking college courses. Frequently, the Marines end the day lifting weights or jogging as best they can among the parked helicopters, Jeeps and other equipment tied to the ship's deck.
The troops are briefed frequently on the military intelligence coming out of Bosnia, said Forbush, and the activities frequently raise the unit's level of readiness.
For example, a few weeks ago when the warring factions in Bosnia were scheduled to attend a high-level military briefing aboard the George Washington and a Serbian general appeared to be holding out, Forbush had two CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopters on alert in case there were problems.
``We were there in case the (other transports) had problems with weather, or whatever,'' said Forbush. ``When I heard he (the Serbian general) was at a soccer field, I said, `Oh! no,' they are going to call us to go get that guy.
``But then somebody said wait.''
Waiting may not be what the Marines do best, but they do it often, said Forbush.
They waited off the shore of Mogadishu in Somalia for more than 90 days during a previous deployment, he said. The same happened in Haiti.
``We love going ashore,'' said Forbush. ``Snipers out shooting people. . .
There are just so many pushups Marines can do.
``You spend all your time training to do this and we want to have a chance to do it for real,'' said Chontosh. ``To put in all the hard work and never see the results is a little disturbing. But that's what we get paid for.''
For Cpl. Matthew Dye, 21, of Pittsburgh, a lot of time is spent taking care of the 1955-vintage Jeep his squad maintains as an anti-tank weapon.
``It breaks the monotony,'' he said.
``This is old,'' he said of his Jeep. ``We think it's been around since the Chosen River,'' said Dye, referring to the Korean War battle site.
The Jeep is an M-151, an old, four-cylinder model introduced in World War II and since replaced by the Humvee.
``The Army was using them for target practice when we found them,'' said Dye. ``We found we can fit three of them inside our CH-53 helicopters. The Humvee's won't fit at all.
``We put a Tow missile system on them, a .50-caliber machine gun and roll bar and we can go,'' Dye said.
Forbush and his staff are concerned that the Marines go ashore soon.
``The unit we replaced had only 24 days of liberty during their entire six months,'' said Marine Capt. Andy Delargcha, of Schenectady, N.Y., the Marines' lawyer aboard.
``When we saw them a few weeks ago they looked beat, tired and wanted to go home. They never had a chance to go ashore.
``They were disappointed nobody called.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color staff photo by Martin Smith-Rodden
Marine Cpl. Matthew Dye, 21, of Pittsburg, spends a lot of time
taking care of the 1955-vintage Jeep his squad uses as an anti-tank
weapon. "We put a TOW missle system on them, a .50-caliber machine
gun and roll bar and we can go," Dye says.
KEYWORDS: BOSNIA CIVIL WAR OPERATION JOINT ENDEAVOR by CNB