{"id":45402,"date":"2021-09-02T18:14:02","date_gmt":"2021-09-02T18:14:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/09\/02\/the-us-navy-is-combining-diver-teams-as-it-readies-for-future-wars\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T22:01:50","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T22:01:50","slug":"the-us-navy-is-combining-diver-teams-as-it-readies-for-future-wars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2021\/09\/02\/the-us-navy-is-combining-diver-teams-as-it-readies-for-future-wars\/","title":{"rendered":"The US Navy is combining diver teams as it readies for future wars"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

ODESA, Ukraine \u2014 A port of vital interest <\/b>to the U.S. military is bombed and destroyed in a future great-power battle, with sunken ships and piers in the water blocking access for ships trying to resupply American forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Navy Seabee divers and salvage divers are scattered across the theater conducting smaller missions, but the fight can\u2019t continue until this major job is done \u2014 the underwater wreckage cleared and the port infrastructure rebuilt so resupply at this hub can resume. In this worst-case scenario for the U.S., the only way to get the port operating again may be to integrate the usually-separate divers \u2014 underwater construction and salvage \u2014 into a single unit unlike anything the Navy has fielded in the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s the scenario the Naval Expeditionary Combat Command has in mind as it prepares for future wars: it will almost certainly have to disaggregate the forces, but if the adversary hits a strategic hub, the command may not be able to wait until an entire salvage company or an entire underwater construction team can aggregate. The divers may need to be cross-trained, or at least familiar enough with each other\u2019s missions and procedures to help out in a dire situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This focus on interoperability has driven two recent diving operations that integrated components of Underwater Construction Team 1 and Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2 into a \u201cblended unit of action\u201d that can take on complex underwater missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Ukraine, as part of the Sea Breeze 21 international exercise, the team put its new integration to the test against a real problem: an old Soviet yacht abandoned at the Odesa naval base sank in 2016 and has since been blocking some half a dozen berthing spots the navy needs to support its growing fleet<\/a>. After a couple years of planning, the U.S. Navy finally executed the mission to remove the yacht and free up the port \u2014 with UCT and MDSU divers working hand in hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Elements of Underwater Construction Team 1 and Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2 worked together to lift a sunken Soviet-era yacht from the harbor at the Odesa naval base in Ukraine. The yacht had been blocking access to several berthing spots at the military pier and was removed as part of the Sea Breeze 21 exercise. (U.S. Navy photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Just weeks later, the units came together again in their homeport of Virginia Beach to conduct a mission in the Large Scale Exercise 21 event that hews more closely to the worst-case scenario they could face in combat against a peer adversary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The naval expeditionary combat forces were tasked with clearing and rebuilding a port \u2014 maybe an enemy port that was scuttled as U.S. forces approached, or maybe a port in an allied country that was hit by an enemy missile. Sunken ships or pieces of pier infrastructure are blocking access to the damaged port. In this high-end environment, MDSU divers broke apart and removed the items obstructing access; UCT assessed the port infrastructure and made underwater repairs; Seabees on land fixed piers and fendering above the water; explosive ordnance disposal units swept the area to ensure no unexploded weapons could hurt the sailors; and Maritime Expeditionary Security Forces teams ensured security at sea and ashore while the mission was ongoing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn some of the conflicts that we\u2019re preparing for, we understand the maritime infrastructure is going to become a critical kind of tipping point: If we maintain and are able to facilitate the establishment of the appropriate amount of critical infrastructure, then we have the strategic advantage,\u201d Cmdr. Steve Cobos, the commanding officer of Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2, told Defense News in a recent interview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf the enemy is able to deny that critical infrastructure from us, then they have the advantage,\u201d he added. \u201cAs we look at concepts in order to create resiliency for the fleet commanders, the port damage repair is a concept that NECC has looked across and said, hey, we have these capabilities that are all across the spectrum. If we marry all these things together into one single unit of action, or one adaptive force package, then we can get at and solve some of those problems with respect to resiliency,\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The MDSU and UCT divers use the same dive equipment and the same health and safety standards for their dives and subsequent recompression efforts \u2014 but while underwater, they conduct vastly different missions, using different tools and requiring different training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MDSU divers have some limited assessment skills, Cobos said, while UCT 1 Commanding Officer Lt. Cmdr. Seth McGuire said his divers have light salvage capabilities. Though they\u2019ve been involved in common missions over the years, they\u2019ve never really tried to integrate the way they are now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Better integration between the diving units could help create additional capacity for the two small but in-demand communities and would help them more seamlessly conduct missions like port damage repair that require both their expertise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n