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United States Navy History, focusing on the Atlantic, 8th, 2nd and 4th Fleets Part 4 of 4 (2nd, Fleet Forces Command & 4th Fleet |
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A Sailors tale of his Tour of duty in the U.S. Navy (August 1977 to February 1983) Operation Evening Light and Eagle Claw - 24 April 1980
Book - ISBN NO. 978-1-4276-0454-5 EBook - ISBN NO. 978-1-329-15473-5
Operations Evening Light and Eagle Claw (24 April 1980) Iran and Air Arm History (1941 to 1980)
Book ISBN NO. xxxxxxxxxxxxx EBook ISBN NO. 978-1-329-19945-3
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United States Navy History, focusing on the Atlantic, 8th, 2nd and 4th Fleets Part 1 of 4 (1778 to 1918) Part 2 of 4 (1919 to 1989) Part 3 of 4 (1990 to 2011) Part 4 of 4 (2nd, Fleet Forces Command & 4th Fleet (8th decommissioned)
2nd, Fleet Forces Command & 4th Fleet
U.S. Second Fleet COMSECONDFLT
“Second Fleet was part of US Atlantic Command. Based in Norfolk, Virginia until its disestablishment in September 2011, and was responsible in peacetime for training the Atlantic battle fleet in war-fighting skills, developing and evaluating new naval tactics and maintaining theater battle group readiness. Second Fleet’s area of responsibility included the Atlantic coast of South America and part of the west coast of Central America” (Ref.313C & 313CB).
“On 30 September 2011, Commander, US 2nd Fleet was disestablished and merged with US Fleet Forces Command. The disestablishment of US 2nd Fleet was announced on 6 January 2011, and was aligned with Department of Defense efforts to reduce overhead expenditures to protect force structure and invest in modernization. USFF would continue to provide the same level of performance and forces ready for tasking to combatant commanders.
The Commander, Second Fleet, under CINCLANTFLT, plans for, and when directed, conducts battle force operations in the Atlantic command in support of designated unified or allied commanders. The Commander, Second Fleet directs movements and exercises operational control of assigned units to carry out scheduled ocean transits and other special operations as directed by CINCLANTFLT in order to maximize fleet operational readiness torespond to contingencies in the Atlantic command area of operations. The Commander, Second Fleet also plans fleet intertype train-ing exercises and participates in joint and combined exercises as directed” (Ref. 313CB). “US 2nd Fleet was responsible in peacetime for training the Atlantic battle fleet in war-fighting skills, developing and evaluating new naval tactics and maintaining theater battle group readiness. Second Fleet’s area of responsibility included the Atlantic coast of South America and part of the west coast of Central America” (Ref.313C & 313CB).
“COMSECONDFLT has permanent assignment with NATO's Supreme Allied Command Atlantic's (SACLANT) chain-of-command, as the Commander Striking Fleet Atlantic. COMSTRIKFLTLANT commands a multinational force whose primary mission deters aggression, and protects NATO's Atlantic interests. Establishing and maintaining maritime superiority in the Atlantic, COMSTRIKFLTLANT ensures the integrity of NATO's sea-lines-of-communication. Countries contributing include: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States” (Ref. 313CB).
“The new organization created by this merger will remain in Norfolk, Virginia, and be known as the deputy director J7 for joint and coalition warfighting, a subordinate element of the Joint Staff J7” (Ref. 313B15).
“On 4 August 2011, Joint Forces Command cased its flag colors and officially disestablished on 31 August 2011” (Ref. 313B15; 313B22; 313B23 & 313B29).
Joint Forces Command Cases Its Colors
“The need for a joint force hasn’t gone away, but the need for a specific command dedicated to “jointness” has, and the U.S. Joint Forces Command furled its colors today.
The command, established in 1999 to champion getting all branches of the military to work together more closely, cased its colors at a ceremony in Suffolk, Va.
Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, awarded Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, the organization’s last commander, with the Defense Distinguished Service Medal for his service in shutting down the command. Odierno will succeed Gen. Martin E. Dempsey -- who will become Joint Chiefs chairman upon Mullen’s retirement -- as Army chief of staff.
Mullen acknowledged that many in the crowd may have had bittersweet feelings at today’s event. “You can take genuine pride in [Joint Forces Command’s] essential role in transforming and guiding the separate branches of our military into a truly joint force,” he said. The U.S. military has made tremendous strides since the early 1980s, when operations in Grenada and Lebanon pointed to gaps among the services, Mullen noted.
“Through the course of two wars, we have built an incredible joint force in ways that many of us could not have imagined,” he said. “In fact, your efforts have permeated every level of our military, and just two days ago in Baghdad, I fielded not one, but two questions from troops who are focused on earning joint qualifications and on the lessons we have learned from fighting and operating jointly.” Operating jointly now is embedded in military thinking, and the practical experience that soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines gain from joint service in the wars returns to their services with different perspectives, the chairman said.
“In Afghanistan, for example, the highways, byways and flyways are patrolled, protected and nurtured by a joint and coalition team, including explosive ordnance removal crews along the Ring Road, provincial reconstruction teams from Helmand to Kunduz to Khost, and persistent joint close air support that is available anywhere at any time throughout the country,” the admiral said. “These efforts and our evolution as a joint force remind me of Henry Ford’s words that ‘Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress, working together is success.’ If that is so, then everyone here has indeed succeeded as we post [Joint Forces Command’s] colors one last time.” Joint Forces Command put in place procedures and techniques that help at the highest levels of strategy as well, the chairman said. This year, he noted, procedures the command put in place and tested allowed the United States and allies to save countless lives in Libya by quickly putting together the operation to stop Moammar Gadhafi’s forces from driving on Benghazi. The lessons learned also allowed the United States to turn over operations to NATO seamlessly, he added.
“While I believe our experiences in Libya and elsewhere validate our past investments, I believe they also speak to the nature of future joint operations, for they will not be joint for the sake of jointness. They will be joint and combined because the international, economic and threat environments demand we work together in order to be successful,” Mullen said.
“Indeed,” he added, “the world has become so flat, so fast and so interconnected that we can no longer draw neat lines between the sea and the shore, the horizon and the sky. When the space, cyber and information domains are considered, it becomes clear that our services truly operate in more battle space collectively than they can control exclusively.”
The push toward closer cooperation will continue, moved in part because of tightening defense budgets, Mullen said. “No one can do it alone,” he added, “and quite frankly, no one can afford to do it alone, either.”
Mullen cited Air Force and Navy cooperation on the air-sea battle concept, setting aside parochial interests to overcome emerging 21st century threats.
“This and many other joint approaches would have been almost unthinkable a mere generation ago,” he said” (Ref. 313B29).
Biographies:
Related Sites:
US Second Fleet History
“The US Second Fleet traces its origin to the reorganization of the Navy after World War II in December 1945 when the formation of the United States Eighth Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher. In January 1947, Eighth Fleet was renamed Second Task Fleet. Three years later, in February 1950, the command was redesignated U.S. Second Fleet” (Ref. 313C & 313CB).
“USS Mount Whitney (LCC-20) was the fleet flagship of the Second Fleet. The force consisted of a balanced mix of capabilities including aircraft carriers, surface combatants, submarines, surveillance assets, amphibious forces, marine landing and mobile logistic units. Second Fleet operates primarily in the Atlantic Ocean from the North Pole to the South Pole and from the shores of the United States to the west coast of Europe. It also operates along both coasts of South America and part of the west coast of Central America. In all, it covers more than 38 million square miles (98 million km²). The US Second Fleet traces its origin to the reorganization of the Navy after World War II in December 1945 when the formation of the US Eighth Fleet was activated as it was recognized that a numbered fleet was needed for the Atlantic” (Ref. 313C).
“Second Fleet's area of responsibility included approximately 6,700,000 square miles (17,000,000 km2) of the Atlantic Ocean from the North Pole to the Caribbean and from the shores of the United States to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Second Fleets West Coast counterpart was United States Third Fleet” (Ref.313C).
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Battle Force |
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Patrol Reconnaissance Force |
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Amphibious Force |
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Logistics |
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ASW Force |
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Mine Warfare |
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Expeditionary |
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Surface Warfare |
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“Additionally, Commander, Second Fleet was the immediate superior to a number of Carrier Strike Groups, Expeditionary Strike Group 2, Commander Strike Force Training Atlantic, as well as the Standing Navy Command Element (COMSTANDNAV CE), a deployable command element that has served multiple rotations as the headquarters of Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa” (Ref. 313C).
Reduced area of responsibility
“On 1 July 2008, the Navy re-established the United States Fourth Fleet, based at Naval Station Mayport in Jacksonville, Florida, which then assumed responsibility for U.S. Navy ships, aircraft and submarines operating in the Caribbean Sea and the waters of Central and South America:
Navy Re-Establishes U.S. Fourth Fleet
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead announced today the re-establishment of the U.S. Fourth Fleet and assigned Rear Adm. Joseph D. Kernan, currently serving as commander, Naval Special Warfare Command, as its new commander. Fourth Fleet will be responsible for U.S. Navy ships, aircraft and submarines operating in the Caribbean, and Central and South America.
U.S. Fourth Fleet will be dual-hatted with the existing commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (NAVSO), currently located in Mayport, Fla. U.S. Fourth Fleet has been re-established to address the increased role of maritime forces in the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) area of operations, and to demonstrate U.S. commitment to regional partners.
“Re-establishing the Fourth Fleet recognizes the immense importance of maritime security in the southern part of the Western Hemisphere, and signals our support and interest in the civil and military maritime services in Central and South America,” said Roughead. “Our maritime strategy raises the importance of working with international partners as the basis for global maritime security. This change increases our emphasis in the region on employing naval forces to build confidence and trust among nations through collective maritime security efforts that focus on common threats and mutual interests. “
Effective July 1, the command will have operational responsibility for U.S. Navy assets assigned from east and west coast fleets to operate in the SOUTHCOM area. As a result, U.S. Fourth Fleet will not involve an increase in forces assigned in Mayport, Fla. These assets will conduct varying missions including a range of contingency operations, counter narcoterrorism, and theater security cooperation (TSC) activities. TSC includes military-to-military interaction and bilateral training opportunities as well as humanitarian assistance and in-country partnerships.
U.S. Fourth Fleet will retain responsibility as NAVSO, the Navy component command for SOUTHCOM. Its mission is to direct U.S. naval forces operating in the Caribbean, and Central and South American regions and interact with partner nation navies to shape the maritime environment.
Kernan will be the first Navy SEAL to serve as a numbered fleet commander.
For more information on U.S. Fourth Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command, including the map of its area of responsibility, go to http://www.cusns.navy.mil” (Ref. 313C & 313CE).
Haitian Earthquake
“In the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Second Fleet dispatched 17 ships, 48 helicopters, 12 fixed-wing aircraft and over 10,000 sailors and Marines in support of Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Response. Second Fleet units conducted 336 air deliveries, delivered 32,400 US gallons (123,000 l; 27,000 imp gal) of water, 111,082 meals and 9,000 lb (4,100 kg) of medical supplies. Hospital ship USNS Comfort, as well as survey vessels, ferries, elements of the Maritime_Prepositioning_ship and underway replenishment fleets, and a further three amphibious operations ships also participated” (Ref. 313C).
Hurricane Irene
“During the evacuation of Hurricane Irene in August, 2011, the fleet evacuated to the safety of the open ocean” (Ref. 313C & 313CD).
“In the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, on 12 January 2010, the Second Fleet dispatched 17 ships, 48 helicopters, 12 fixed-wing aircraft and over 10,000 sailors and Marines in support of Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Response. Second Fleet units conducted 336 air deliveries, delivered 32,400 US gallons (123,000 l; 27,000 imp gal) of water, 111,082 meals and 9,000 lb (4,100 kg) of medical supplies. Hospital ship USNS Comfort, as well as survey vessels, ferries, elements of the Maritime_Prepositioning_ship and underway replenishment fleets, and a further three amphibious operations ships also participated” (Ref. 313C).
“On August 21, 2010, it was reported that Secretary Robert Gates was considering disestablishing Second Fleet:
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates’ decision to close the Joint Forces Command has the backing of its former and incoming commanders and is likely to be approved by President Barack Obama before Sept. 1, according to a memo widely circulated to Hampton Roads elected officials Friday” (Ref. 313C & 313CE).
“On January 6, 2011, it was reported via a DoD news article that the Navy would disestablish Second Fleet in order to "use those savings and more to fund additional ships:
Joint Chiefs Fully Agree With Gates’ Efficiencies
The members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff are fully behind Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates’ proposed efficiencies for the military, the nation’s top military officer said today.
Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters at a Pentagon news conference that “the chiefs and I are in complete support of these decisions.”
The military leaders were integral to the process that looked for and found $154 billion in savings over the next five years, Mullen said.
“This is the second time we’ve been through this kind of review with the secretary, and it has been managed in the most inclusive, detailed and deliberate way,” he said. “He gave us broad guidance. We helped craft the specifics, and these are our decisions, too.”
The services will be able to reinvest the savings they found in higher-priority programs. All services will invest in more intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets. The Navy will disestablish the 2nd Fleet and will use those savings and more to fund additional ships. The Army will cancel a missile system and use the funds to refurbish armored vehicles and fund suicide prevention activities. The Air Force will consolidate three numbered Air Force staffs and use the savings to ensure U.S. access to space.
The secretary restructured the F-35 joint strike fighter program and agreed with the recommendation to eliminate the Marine Corps’ expeditionary fighting vehicle. The plan in the out years calls for a reduction in the size of the Army and Marine Corps.
The chairman often has said he sees the growth of the national debt as a security threat to the United States. The secretary’s efficiencies, reforms and budget proposals help the Defense Department to attack the debt situation, he said today.
“We can’t hold ourselves exempt from the belt-tightening,” he said. “Neither can we allow ourselves to contribute to the very debt that puts our long-term security at risk.”
The efficiencies aren’t solely about cutting or savings, the chairman said, but rather are about readiness.
“Not only do these reforms preserve essential capabilities -– which is the highest priority of this process -– but it will improve this process,” Mullen said. “We will do things smarter, more efficiently and more in line with the challenges we face and the fiscal environment we are in”” (Ref. 313C & 313CF).
Biographies:
Related Sites:
Special Report: Defense Efficiencies Initiative
Speech
Transcript: Gates, Mullen Briefing
News Release: DOD Announces $150 Billion Reinvestment
Video: Gates, Mullen Briefing
Video - Briefing Q&A
Related Articles:
Gates Reveals Budget Efficiencies, Reinvestment Possibilities
“The fleet was officially dissolved in a ceremony at Norfolk on 30 September 2011” (Ref. 313C & 313CG).
“Second Fleet's responsibilities and its additional title of Commander, Task Force 20, were transferred to the re-organized United States Fleet Forces Command, as was the post of CJOS COE” (Ref. 313C).
Official U.S. Navy file photo of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) and ships assigned to the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group (HSTCSG) transiting the Atlantic Ocean Feb. 16, 2018, while conducting composite training unit exercise (COMPTUEX). The exercise evaluated the strike group's ability as a whole to carry out sustained combat operations from the sea, ultimately certifying the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group for deployment. http://www.navy.mil/view_imagex.asp?id=256076&t=1
CNO Announces Establishment of U.S. 2nd Fleet
“Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. John Richardson, announced the establishment of U.S. 2nd Fleet during a change of command ceremony for U.S. Fleet Forces Command (USFF) in Norfolk, May 4, 2018. Second Fleet will exercise operational and administrative authorities over assigned ships, aircraft and landing forces on the East Coast and northern Atlantic Ocean. Additionally, it will plan and conduct maritime, joint and combined operations and will train, certify and provide maritime forces to respond to global contingencies. Commander, 2nd Fleet will report to USFF. "Our National Defense Strategy makes clear that we're back in an era of great power competition as the security environment continues to grow more challenging and complex," said Richardson. "That's why today, we're standing up Second Fleet to address these changes, particularly in the north Atlantic." Second Fleet was disestablished in 2011 and many of its personnel, assets and responsibilities were merged into USFF” (Ref. Story Number: NNS180504-15 - Release Date: 5/4/2018 2:31:00 PM - From Navy Office of Information, NORFOLK (NNS). http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=105453
US Navy re-establishes Second Fleet amid Russia tensions
By Ryan Browne, CNN – 5 4 2018
“Amid heightened tensions with Russia, the US Navy announced Friday the re-establishment of the US Second Fleet which will be responsible for Naval forces along the East Coast and in the northern Atlantic Ocean.
The areas are seen as critical to counter the rising threat of Russia and the new US defense strategy that focuses more on great power rivalry, according to multiple US defense officials.
The Defense Department also announced that the US has offered to host and lead NATO's newly proposed Joint Force Command for the Atlantic at Norfolk, Virginia.
A US Navy official said that "the return to great power competition demands that we focus on the Atlantic." Re-establishing the second fleet "ensures dedicated reinforcement of the region and demonstrates a capable and credible deterrence effect" against adversaries, the official said.
A Navy official said the fleet will eventually involve 250 personnel and be led by a three-star admiral.
The Second Fleet was disestablished in 2011 for cost-savings and a changing strategic environment. The Second Fleet was originally formed following World War II as the Second Task Fleet and was re-designated in 1950 as the Second Fleet with the primary mission of supporting NATO” (Ref. http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/us-navy-re-establishes-second-fleet-amid-russia-tensions/ar-AAwLxzG?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=iehp).
US reactivates 2nd fleet to rival Russia in North Atlantic ‘great power competition’
Published time: 5 May, 2018 00:34 Edited time: 5 May, 2018 00:54
“In a major realignment from fighting terrorism to great power rivalry with Russia, the US Navy is re-establishing its Second Fleet. The command had been responsible for the North Atlantic Ocean before it was deactivated in 2011.
Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Admiral John Richardson made the announcement on Friday, during a change of command ceremony in Norfolk, Virginia.
“Our National Defense Strategy makes clear that we're back in an era of great power competition as the security environment continues to grow more challenging and complex,” Richardson said. “That's why today, we're standing up Second Fleet to address these changes, particularly in the north Atlantic.”
Adm. John Richardson
✔ @CNORichardson
Our NDS makes clear that we're back in an era of great power competition as the security environment continues to grow more challenging and complex. That's why today, we're standing up 2nd Fleet to address these changes, particularly in the north Atlantic: http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=105453 …
Richardson was referring to the strategy drafted by Defense Secretary James Mattis and published in January. It envisions a leaner, meaner Pentagon, more oriented towards state adversaries such as Russia and China.
Once a major naval command, covering both the northern and the southern Atlantic, the Second Fleet was stood down in 2011, and its remaining personnel, assets and responsibilities merged into US Fleet Forces (USFF) in Norfolk. Reactivation of the Second Fleet was one of the recommendations in the recent report on problems plaguing the US Seventh Fleet in the Pacific.
The revived command will be stood up on July 1, and will initially have eleven officers and four enlisted personnel. That staff will eventually expand to 85 officers, 164 enlisted and seven civilians, according to the US Naval Institute.
The revamped Second Fleet will focus solely on the North Atlantic, as the south was assigned to the Fourth Fleet in 2008. And in that vast blue expanse, there is only one potential foe: Russia.
“Russian submarines are prowling the Atlantic, testing our defenses, confronting our command of the seas, and preparing the complex underwater battlespace to give them an edge in any future conflict,” Vice Admiral James Foggo III, commander of the US 6th Fleet, wrote in 2016. Foggo is now the commander of US naval forces in Europe and Africa.
Russian nuclear subs quietly reached US coast & left undetected – Navy officer
Though smaller than in the days of the Soviet Union, the modernized Russian Navy has demonstrated previously unknown capabilities over the past several years. It confirmed some of Foggo’s fears in March, when it was made public that several of its nuclear submarines had approached the east coast of the US and departed undetected, as part of a regular exercise.
Russian navy ships and submarines have also taken part in the fighting against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorists in Syria since October 2015, firing cruise missiles and delivering supplies through the Syrian ports of Tartus and Latakia. The most notable naval deployment was in November 2016, featuring the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov and the heavy missile cruiser Pyotr Veliky (Peter the Great), the largest ship of her class in the world. In June 2017, Moscow announced it would keep a 15-ship task force in the Eastern Mediterranean, operating out of Syria” (Ref. https://www.rt.com/usa/425895-navy-second-fleet-russia).
Navy Reestablishes U.S. 4th Fleet
“Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Gary Roughead announced today the reestablishment of U.S. 4th Fleet and assigned Rear Adm. Joseph D. Kernan, currently serving as Commander, Naval Special Warfare Command, as its first commander.
U.S. 4th Fleet will be responsible for U.S. Navy ships, aircraft and submarines operating in the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) area of focus, which encompasses the Caribbean, and Central and South America and the surrounding waters.
Located in Mayport, Fla., and dual-hatted with Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (COMUSNAVSO), U.S. 4th Fleet reestablishment addresses the increased role of maritime forces in the SOUTHCOM area of focus, and demonstrates U.S. commitment to regional partners.
"Reconstituting the Fourth Fleet recognizes the immense importance of maritime security in the southern part of the Western Hemisphere, and sends a strong signal to all the civil and military maritime services in Central and Latin America," said Roughead. "Aligning the Fourth Fleet along with our other numbered fleets and providing the capabilities and personnel are a logical execution of our new Maritime Strategy."
U.S. 4th Fleet was original established in 1943 as one of the original numbered fleets, and was given a specific mission. During World War II, the U.S. needed a command in charge of protecting against raiders, blockade runners and enemy submarines in the South Atlantic. U.S. 4th Fleet was disestablished in 1950 when U.S. 2nd Fleet took over its responsibilities.
Initially, the new 4th Fleet will be headquartered with COMUSNAVSO and take advantage of the existing infrastructure, communications support and personnel already in place in Mayport. As a result, U.S. 4th Fleet will not involve an increase in forces assigned in Mayport. "This is a significant change and presents us the opportunity to garner the right resources for the missions we run for Southern Command," said Rear Adm. James W. Stevenson Jr., Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (NAVSO). "As a numbered fleet, we will be in a better position to ensure the Combatant Commander has the right assets available when needed."
U.S. 4th Fleet will retain responsibility as COMUSNAVSO, the Navy component command for SOUTHCOM. Its mission is to direct U.S. naval forces operating in the Caribbean, Central and South American regions and interact with partner nation navies within the maritime environment. Various operations include counter-illicit trafficking, Theater Security Cooperation, military-to-military interaction and bilateral and multinational training. For more information from Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command visit www.cusns.navy.mil” (Ref. Story Number: NNS080424-13 - Release Date: 4/24/2008 3:32:00 PM - By Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Alan Gragg, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command Public Affairs, MAYPORT, Fla. (NNS).
http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=36606