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Helicopter Sea Weapons School Atlantic Plays Critical Role in NATO’s Dynamic Move

By LT Eric J. Mott, USN

Nestled in the foothills of the Apennines at the southern end of the legendary Riviera di Levante lies a thousand year old maritime center called La Spezia. Two thousand miles away by sail where the Low Countries hold off the mighty North Sea lies the sleepy coastal resort town of Ostend. As distant as these two destinations may seem, their esoteric connection holds vital the prosperity of Europe, and perhaps even the world. Every year these popular ports of call play host to a little-known war game called Dynamic Move (DYME), NATO’s premier mine countermeasures exercise based on real geography, mine threats, and maritime vessels. With over 90% of global trade carried over the waves, not to mention the trillions of dollars’ worth of transactions carried under them via cables and pipelines, the stakes have never been higher. Unfortunately, the downside to this high-seas gamble is logistical risk, or, in other words, modern life. If critical sea lines of communication (SLOC) go offline, even for a brief period, entire economies can be destroyed. Some SLOCs are so vital that closure would result in an imminent humanitarian crisis.

But what lurks beneath or above the waves to bring such a disaster is not some sexy submarine, ship, plane, or missile, but rather an unassuming naval mine costing only a few thousand dollars. Technology so simple and inexpensive that any adversary can obtain and employ it. Moreover, naval mines’ clandestine nature makes them an easy choice for gray zone tactics and asymmetric warfare. On a psychological level, even the ostensible establishment of a minefield, regardless of its actual existence, is enough to bring to a standstill commercial and naval traffic alike. That’s why NATO, especially with its vulnerability and proximity to numerous maritime choke points, is well adapted to the threat of naval mines, with two of its four standing naval forces dedicated to mine countermeasures (MCM). For its European partners, it is not uncommon for MCM to be their navies’ mainstay. For the U.S., however, what’s left to counter this problem is a hodgepodge of long-promised “modern” systems and an aging fleet of forward-deployed wooden-hulled ships and maintenance-heavy helicopters. In fact, both the Avengerclass MCM ship and the sole remaining operational MH53E airborne mine countermeasures (AMCM) squadron, the HM-15 Blackhawks, saw commissioning the same year: 1987. However, what they lack in modern sophistication, they make up for in actual operational experience: they’ve swept and hunted bona fide enemy mines with real world consequences. In short, their systems and tactics are proven, but it is time to pass the baton.

As a Navy, we find ourselves in a precarious position - the complete transformation of a critical warfare area that has seen its share of neglect. That’s why it is critical to capture and pass on the knowledge, and perhaps even wisdom, from the trove of harrowing time spent in the minefield by those who dared set foot in that arena. One such individual is Mr. Mark Reynolds, a civilian contractor at Helicopter Sea Weapons School Atlantic, who has been training HM pilots and aircrew for over three decades. But, if that is not special enough, he’s likely the only person still working in MCM for the U.S. who has actually been in a mine strike. During Operation Desert Storm, he was already a contractor supporting AMCM operations aboard USS Tripoli (LPH 10) when it struck a contact mine on the morning of February 18th, 1991. Having been thrown from his rack during slumber, his life henceforth would forever be entwined with mine warfare. This blast is still being felt today as every HM WTI learns their craft from his indispensable teaching.

Our charge now, with the imminent sundown of the MH-53E Sea Dragon and with it, Mr. Reynolds’ time with the Navy, is to effectively parlay his teachings to the next vanguard of AMCM and, ideally, the MCM Community at large. This is where DYME is involved. Held twice a year, once in La Spezia, Italy, home of the Italian Mine Warfare and Hydrographic Command, and once in Ostend, Belgium, home of the NATO Naval Mine Warfare Center of Excellence, DYME offers a stage where NATO MCM Staffs can demonstrate their prowess and earn their Response Force certifications, a requirement for ascension to one of the standing NATO MCM Groups. For the third time in a row now, HSCWSL has sent both pilot and aircrew HM WTIs to assist, train, and evaluate over 140 personnel from 24 partner nations on Task Force, Task Group, and Task Unit level staff planning and execution of AMCM operations as well as analysis of game simulation accuracy. Moreover, this most recent iteration saw HSC-21 participate as observers, one of a series of milestones planned to bring them up to speed on all things MCM. Importantly, on the horizon is their participation in the Advanced AMCM Tactics Continuum held at HSCWSL, where they’ll get to train with the Dragon Master himself, Mr. Reynolds, further solidifying his legacy by bridging the past with the future. Our shared hope is that this will equip HSC-21 to excel as AMCM leaders in this coming RIMPAC and the next DYME.

More importantly however, we need them to be ready to carry the torch of AMCM into an uncertain future where the use of mines is not just likely, but a guarantee. As Sir Walter Raleigh famously said almost 200 years ago: “For whosoever commands the sea commands the trade; whosoever commands the trade of the world commands the riches of the world, and consequently the world itself.” Will we be ready to counter the pernicious threat of naval mining? Are our new systems up to the challenge? Are we a competent Naval MCM Force? Only time will tell, but what’s for certain is best summed up in the words of Carl Jung: “The world will ask who you are, and if you do not know, the world will tell you.”