The History of the 1097th Transportation Company
Introduction
The 1097th has been
earmarked for success since it’s activation, and the promotion of one of it’s first Commander’s William "Gus" Pagonis to
Lieutenant General in recognition of his outstanding achievements as Chief
Logistician during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. Several key turning points
for the unit will be outlined here for posterity. They include, the units
involvement in the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, the 1097th’s
involvement in the Vietnam War in 1967, the unit’s move to Panama in 1976, the
unit’s accomplishments in 1986, the unit’s involvement in Operation Just Cause
in 1989, the unit’s restructuring in 1991 to a composite boat company, the winning
of the National Defense Transportation Association (NDTA) Unit of the Year
award in 1994 and 1997, the unit’s involvement with Operation Safe Haven in
1994 and 1995, and the initiation of the company downsizing in accordance with
the PC-TIP in 1996.
Cuban Missile Crisis
Not much is documented on this
period, except for a mention in a command speech by Captain Ashworth in 1983.
In his speech, he states, "During the Cuban Missile Crisis, the 1097th
was moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where it trained and remained on
alert."
Vietnam Era
The 1097th earned the
majority of its campaign streamers and awards during the Vietnam Campaign.
During this period, the company supported the 45th Engineer Group at
Vang Ro Bay in the effort to help build a deep water port there.
That port was constructed and was the second largest in Vietnam. Under the
Command of Captain Pagonis, the company had a strength of 19 LCM-8s, 1 LCM-6 command and control vessel and up to
180 men. The LCMs used at this time were more than 25 years old, but Captain
Pagonis assigned one LCM-8 as the Damage Control Vessel (DCV) to perform
maintenance when required. The DCV and maintenance team at the time kept
spirits high with its motto, "Never deadline a vessel." Apparently it
worked as reportedly the unit kept a 90% operational status of its boats.
The Mission in July 1967 on the
Mekong Delta was to support the 3rd Battalion, 34th
Artillery, a part of the 9th Division’s 2nd Brigade. The
Artillery consisted of six 105mm Howitzers mounted on floating barges. The 1097th
mission was to maneuver these Howitzers into firing positions along the deltas.
This allowed infantrymen of the 9th to have enough fire support to
land at various areas conducting waterborne assaults in the deltas. The company
remained flexible throughout its tour which is one staple of it’s outstanding success. This is witnessed in articles
highlighting how the company was able to create waterborne landing platforms
for Hueys, move six howitzer barges, and two mortar barges. Due to
the need to develop a doctrine for this new and unique mission of supporting riverine operations, the 1097th spearheaded how LCMs
would be used for the future of riverine operations. The 1097th during this tour became
completely waterborne, as did the Artillery unit it supported, thanks to the
ingenuity and creativity of the 1097th soldiers. By the end of the
tour the 1097th modifications created living quarters, fire
direction centers, command
posts, landing pads for medevacs,
ammo depots, and maintenance facilities all completely waterborne. What made
the unit so successful in Vietnam also brought great credit to the unit.
Captain Pagonis was awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star with "V"
device and the Legion of Merit for his actions as company commander. Other
awards included four Bronze Stars for valor, and 24 Army Commendation Medals with "V" device.
During this era over 100 heroism awards and six unit medals were presented to
the company.
After Captain Pagonis left for the
Advanced Course in early 1968, Captain Gary D. Wilde assumed responsibility for
command. Under his command the company grew in strength to 27 LCM-8s and 181
men, but continued the Artillery support mission on the deltas with consistent
success.
One notable incident which occurred
in the Vietnam era was the tragic death of a young platoon leader which
occurred on 26 September 1967. Second Lieutenant William Yongue died from drowning. He was attempting to cut loose a piece
of rope that was caught in the propeller to get one of the vessels underway for
a mission. As he attempted to cut loose the rope, he hit the bridge of his nose
on the bottom of the vessel and did not return to the surface. Lieutenant Yongue had been one of the 24 men that had received the Army
Commendation Medal as noted before. Apparently Lieutenant Yongue was respected by his men and his community at home. His
funeral service was filled to the point of standing room only from his friends
and family from all over the state. He was promoted posthumously to First
Lieutenant, and the company named the maintenance barge USAV Yongue.
The last company nickname, River
Raiders, came from the original nickname given during the Vietnam Era of River
Rats.
Move To Panama In 1976
This period of transition from Fort
Eustis, Virginia to the Panama Canal Zone proved to be a very difficult time
for the 1097th, who left the home of the Transportation Corps and found itself
imbedded in the heart of the infantry. A lot of tension arose between the
infantry and team waterborne as is evidenced by historical fact and documented
tales of fights and unwillingness to comply to the infantry way of life. After the move and the subsequent
friction encountered, all five of the transportation officers in the company
and the company first sergeant were replaced by infantry officers and an
infantry first sergeant. The unit history during this period of transition is
provided in this publication for posterity, but be warned, it was written by a First Lieutenant Crenshaw, who
apparently was on his last leg and about to shipped back to Fort Eustis. It is
a bitter account of how awful the situation seemed to him, but in spite of it’s tone, it is probably a fairly accurate account of the
events that took place.
As of June 1976, the unit was part
of the 10th Transportation Battalion stationed at Fort Eustis,
Virginia. In late July 1976, the company sent a recon team to Panama to assess
the situation in preparation for the upcoming move. Second Lieutenant Crenshaw,
at this time, and First Sergeant Carol Ekern were the team that went on the ten-day recon. Captain John
G Cartwright was the commander for the move. Since July, the company had been
anticipating the move, and finally on 29 September 1976 a ten-person advance
party was sent to Panama. The main body arrived 19 days later on 18 October
1976. The rear party arrived on 15 November 1976. By December the company began
to function as normal.
In Panama 1977, the 1097th
was a different and unique organization which nobody had access to previously.
The unit attracted a lot of attention and everyone wanted operational control.
The unit participated in an Army Training Evaluation Program (ARTEP) that year
and numerous other training events with the Jungle Operations Training Center
(JOTC) at Fort Sherman. However in July 1977, an Inspector General (IG)
inspection of the company took place, which resulted in an unsatisfactory
rating. Subsequently, soon after the inspection the First Sergeant was
relieved, and within a week after the inspection, the commander, Captain
Cartwright, was also relieved. As a replacement, the Battalion provided Captain
Raymond Fehrenbach, an Infantry officer. The unit was upset at this act and
rebelled in retaliation. Within six months, the remaining four lieutenants were
moved out of the company.
The River Raider seal seems to have
been in use before the company’s arrival to Panama, because it is mentioned
that it shocked the infantry to see it displayed on the black hats, which were
unusual, and against the uniform of the standard fatigue baseball cap.
1986
Nineteen eighty-six was an important
year in the 1097th history for several reasons. First of all, the
unit entered the National Defense Transportation Unit of the year competition
and placed runner up. Recognition at this level is achieved only by the best,
hardest working and most dedicated units. The award covers the calendar year
from January to December. During that time, the company had two separate commanders.
From January to November, Major Karl Berge served as the commander. Major Berge
is the only field grade officer in the history of the company to serve as
commander. According to accounts from one warrant officer who was in the
company during this period, Major Berge entered the company as a Captain, and
was promoted very soon thereafter. He was afforded the ability to give field
grade article 15 punishment
at the company level. From November on, Captain Beau Timberlake served as
company commander, and it was under his command that the unit entered the
application for the award, but the period covering the award belonged to Major
Berge. In addition to the National Defense Transportation Association Award,
Captain Timberlake also submitted the unit for the Unit Maintenance Excellence
Award and the company was entered as USARSO’s nomination. Captain Timberlake
eventually received a Red Chip Award from the Garrison Commander of the
Atlantic Side for being selected as the person who had most significantly assisted
the Garrison in the completion of it’s mission.
In 1986, the company was comprised
of 15 Landing Craft Mechanized, LCMs or Mike Boats, and 126 personnel. It was
organized into three platoons, two boat platoons of seven Mike Boats each and
one headquarters/maintenance platoon with one Mike Boat. As is in the case in
Panama, the company performed its wartime mission on a daily basis, with a
readiness attitude of a moments
notice. Training qualification statistics were very high, like the Army Physical
Fitness Test (APFT) in which 98% of the company was qualified, the Soldier
Qualification Test (SQT) in which 95% of the company was qualified. The company
supported two tactical exercises and three medical assistance missions. The
unit conducted over 200 waterborne missions logging over 6,500 underway hours.
The unit also conducted numerous DVP briefings, gave tours, and participated in
official ceremonies like the Memorial Day Wreath Laying Ceremony. During the
193rd Infantry Brigade tactical exercise "Kindle Liberty,"
the unit provided a waterborne asset along the Atlantic shore, giving access to
villages only accessible by sea. During this exercise, National Guard equipment
was transported to these remote areas via the LCMs. During Nation Building Exercise
"Road Dawg," two 1097th boats deployed over 280
nautical miles and maintained sustained operations in a remote region of Panama
for over two months. During this period of heightened operations, the company
got its first taste of "Compositeness," as Fort Eustis agreed to
augment the unit with four Landing Craft Utility (LCU) boats from the 329th
Transportation Company.
This year of outstanding success was
also shadowed with one notable blemish, which must have caused quite a stir in
Panama due to the overwhelming amount of historical content left in the
historical file. This event, referred to now as the Russian Vessel Incident of
18 December 1986 caused the Battalion Commander at the time to conduct a
personal investigation.
The incident can simply be described
as the following: the LCM 8504 came along side a Russian vessel in the Panama
Canal. The intent of the crew aboard was to exchange Meals Ready to Eat (MREs)
for Russian cigarettes. The exchange never occurred, no damage was done to
either vessel, and no one was hurt. Somehow, the higher echelons of command got
word of the occurrence and created what is now referred to as an incident. The
incident occurred on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal at the entrance to
the Gatun Locks. The Battalion Commanders report on this incident was very
thorough.
Operation Just Cause
A lot of documentation is provided
on what the 1097th actually did to provide support during the
invasion of Panama in 1989 in an attempt to overthrow the oppressive
dictatorship of Manuel Noriega. Logbooks are on file which kept an accurate
account of who exactly went on raids in the Panama Canal, and what firefights
actually took place involving the 1097th LCMs.
At the time of the invasion,
tensions in Panama were very high, and the Commander was Captain Phillip D. Senechal. The soldiers of the unit were asked to stay on post as
much as possible in accordance with Personnel Movement Limitations (PML), and
the unit was alerted to the diminishing situation with the Panamanian Defense
Force (PDF), now disbanded. The unit was still at Fort Davis, Dock 45 as it had
been since the move in ’76, but now had 15 LCMs, which were readily called to
support the invasion. In the Canal and along the Chagres River, the LCMs proved
to be an effective tool in supporting the infantry via waterborne beach and
jungle insertions, as well as to the Military Police, in transporting prisoners
through the Canal. Action was primarily focused in Gatun Lake and inside the
breaker wall on the Atlantic Side where sporadic sniper fire occurred in the
Cristobal Area.
An accurate account of all vessel
missions and an in depth After Action Review (AAR) of the operation is provided
in the publication. In this review, Captain Senechal describes the firefights that occurred and the movement of
troops throughout the Canal. It also describes the close working relationship
the unit had with the Navy Special Boat Unit and Navy SEALS from Rodnam Naval Station. During the third day of the operation, while
Navy SEALS were aboard, the LCM 8509 drew Sniper fire. The SEALS returned fire
and three PDF personnel were seen to have fallen.
Throughout the entire operation, the
1097th transported over 1,800 troops and over 980 tons of cargo
throughout the Canal. This was apparently due to the restrictions placed on
movement on over the Trans-Isthmian Highway which runs parallel to the Canal.
Fear of ambushes along this highway meant that the LCMs of the 1097th
got a lot of use. In addition to troops and cargo, the Mike boats also moved an
incredible 848 enemy Prisoners Of War, to the final collection point on the
Pacific side
The Army’s First and Only Composite Boat Company
1991
Few people realize it, but the Army
has more boats than the Navy and more aircraft than the airforce. Since the arrival of the 1097th to Panama, the
boat presence of the Army has been a shining example of the quality soldier
sailors the Army has. Although the Army has so many boats, its separate units
are individually designed to serve a specific need. Army boats range from small
and large tug boats to amphibious landing craft, to beach landing craft like
the LCMs of the 1097th, as well as larger vessels which can
transport large amounts of equipment through blue water ocean. In Panama, the
need for Army boats to perform a myriad of missions allowed the Transportation
Corps to establish a Composite Boat Company. Landing Craft Utility (LCU) class
vessels were given to the 1097th in the form of three LCU 1600s and
two LCU 2000s (the third LCU 1600 arrived in 1993). What this meant to USARSO
and SOUTHCOM was that we could continue to support the Jungle Operations
Training Battalion (JOTB) and infantry focused training in Panama with the LCMs
and now use LCUs to provide long haul transportation support.
The arrival of the LCU 2017, El
Caney, and LCU 2018, Five Forks, in 1991 gave USARSO and SOUTHCOM this
desperately needed this long haul capability. In addition to the LCUs now in
the company, one of the young ambitious lieutenants, specifically Second
Lieutenant Robert Villalobos decided that the company needed a J-boat, as a
command and control vessel. Lieutenant Villalobos, a recent graduate of
Merchant Marine Academy at King’s Point, earns his place in the history of the
company for his intense commitment in acquiring this vessel. Lieutenant
Villalobos had to fly to California and accompany the boat to the East Coast,
where it was delivered to Panama. When it was all said and done, somehow the
1097th acquired its new prize at no cost. To this day, the reserve
unit in Stockton, California is still fuming about how it happened. But, as it
turned out, the boat was more a nightmare than it was worth (see my notes at
end of document). It took months to overhaul, and when it was finished it
had only sailed for 66 nautical miles and then some poor unit at Fort Eustis
ended up with it. It was designed to be a command and control boat for the
commander, but it was small and required lots of attention. One particularly
interesting story about the J-boat involved a .50 caliber waterborne range
conducted by the Medium Boat Platoon at the Balboa West Range Complex near Gamboa. With the Battalion Commander Executive Officer and Command
Sergeant Major aboard, Staff Sergeant Ronald Watkins piloted the boat from Gamboa to the range for the command to view the range. After the
range was complete, and the LCMs which had fired were leaving, Staff Sergeant
Watkins also leaving the site, backed into one of the LCMs. This rocked the
smaller J-boat furiously and scared all on board who feared that the boat would be seriously damaged. Staff
Sergeant Watkins began to swear at the LCM Coxswain and threatened to have him
relieved, the Command Sergeant Major simply said, "I’m not a boatie, but it seemed to me that you were the one not looking
while you were backing up." Since that particular mission, the J-boat
hardly seemed acceptable as a command and control vessel and was retrograded as
soon as possible as part of the Treaty Implementation Plan.
National Defense Transportation Association
Unit of the Year
1994
This prestigious award was so nearly
missed in 1986 as the unit was recognized as the runner up. In 1994, the
company proved its abilities and set it’s sights on winning the NDTA award. The company received the
award in early 1995 under the command of Captain Marshall Gutierrez. This award
recognizes the best Transportation Unit (Battalion or smaller) in the active
Army Transportation Corps. In 1994, the company sailed more nautical miles and
completed more missions than ever before and more than any boat unit elsewhere
could come close to. The unit missions provided to the 1097th in
Panama meant that it was able to perform its wartime mission on a daily basis.
The 1097th’s accomplishments during 1994 dictate to the Army boat
field exactly what the capabilities of these boats were. The unit began to use
the word optempo more and more frequently describing how many operations we
were conducting in a certain period of time. The high optempo the unit created another challenge in the maintenance
arena, where the 1097th was able to shine well. Watercraft
operating in salt water generally have
a lot of problems with rust and corrosive elements, tending to deadline
equipment more frequently and requiring more intensive maintenance. Probable
the number one reason the company was so successful during 1994 was it’s ability to have a fully mission capable status of it’s boats and continue to run them to support the Army needs.
The unit developed a customer orientated, mission focused attitude, spearheaded
under Captain Gutierrez. Soldiers that served under regard him with respect. He
worked them harder that they had been worked before and challenged them to
excel as witnessed by the recognition received in winning the NDTA award.
Operation Safe Haven
1994/1995
The unit supported Operation Safe
Haven with personnel who were detached to assist at the various camps in the
Empire Range complex. In late December 1994 immediately following the revolt in
the camps, dubbed as "The Cuban Rock Concert," Captain Gutierrez
immediately began preparing to retrofit several LCMs with cages to transport
prisoners. From this point most of the company began working 16 to 20 hour days
to accomplish this task. With three days of this task the LCM 8501 and the LCM
8504 had cages surrounding the well decks ready for use. The unit was put on
hold until a later date that they might be needed. One month later the cages
were removed with never having being used for their intended purpose.
The Panama Canal Treaty Implementation Plan
Closing Fort Davis and Dock 45
In early February 1995 the unit sent
an advance party to the Pacific side to prepare for the units move to the
Pacific side. This was to prove to be a very complex task as the company would
be making move after move util the unit was inactivated in June 1999. At Fort Davis, all
of the unit’s assets were within a 3 mile radius. The barracks were going to be
on Fort Clayton, until the permanent barracks on Fort Kobbe were renovated, the supply section was also to be on Fort
Clayton, the headquarters section, orderly room, maintenance section, and motor
pool were all going to be located on Rodman Naval Station, and the medium boat
platoon was going to be split with half on Rodman and the other half on Fort
Sherman. By April 1995 the main group began moving one by one over to the
Pacific Side, the vast majority of personnel left on Fort Davis were from the
medium boat platoon who were, while supporting JOTB, preparing for the turnover
of all of the company’s assets at Fort Davis and at Dock 45. The married
soldiers were able to live on Fort Clayton, Curundu, Corozal, Fort Kobbe or Cocoli, was dependent upon where housing was available.
In mid April 1995, Sergeant Gordon
"Lovo
Frio" Folk and Sergeant Sean "El Pirata" Kelly were tasked with finding either a barracks or a
suitable tent site to live in while supporting JOTB. It took them about thirty
minutes, driving time included, to find the condemned section of building 30
above the Fire Department. As the unit was turning in the furniture from the
barracks at Fort Davis they noticed that some of it was coming up missing, were
they expecting for us to sleep on the floor, but not enough to arise any
suspicion. The move continued any by June the entire company had made the move
over to the Pacific side. Those who were supporting JOTB had already moved
their things over to the Pacific side
Medium Boat Platoon in Support of JOTB
1995 - 1999
When Ft Davis and Dock 45 were
nearing closure around April 95 SGT Folk and SGT Kelly were sent to JOTB to
find barracks space for the LCM crews that were supporting JOTB and could no
longer stay at Ft Davis. They acquired Bldg 30 at Ft Sherman. At first the
platoon was divided into two parts, one at Rodman with four LCMs and crews and
the second at Ft Sherman with two LCMs and crews. These crews and LCMs were
rotated out after every cycle. In December 95 Two LCMs were put on admin
deadline awaiting turn-in. The remaining four LCMs were stationed at Ft
Sherman. The reasoning behind this was that the LCMs didn’t have a mission on the
at Rodman and the crews ended up being
put on details. Another reason was that two LCMs were needed to support an
operation in Bocas Del Toro LCM 8501/8582 while two LCMs were still needed to
support JOTB LCM 8504/8519. After the two LCMs returned from Bocas Del Toro two
LCMs were returned to Rodman, LCM 5804/8582. The remaining two LCMs 8501/8519
were left at Ft Sherman to support JOTB. Upon return to Rodman the LCM 8582 was
put on admin deadline awaiting turn-in. The crew of the LCM 8504 was used as
filler personnel aboard LCU 2000s and as detail personnel. In July 96 the LCM
8501/8519 were broached on the beach near the Chagres river causing the entire platoon to head over to Ft Sherman and
assist the stranded LCMs.
In August 96 LT Magee and SFC
Martinez moved the entire platoon along with the LCM 8504 to Bldg 30 at Ft
Sherman. Since August 96 Ft Sherman has become the normal place of duty for
Medium Boat Platoon. Normally, unless the platoon had missions on the weekends,
Monday through Friday the platoon lived at Bldg 30 Ft Sherman. First formation
was held Monday at Ft Sherman for PT and the platoon worked until Friday
afternoon when the platoon could return to the Pacific side. Most of the single
soldiers and geographical bachelors would desire not to leave and spent their
time in Colon or on the Atlantic side with their friends at places they knew
the most and wanted to be. Around mid 97 part of this changed. Monday
formations were now held for the platoon on the Pacific side and after PT and
personal hygiene the platoon would depart in either POVs or GOVs for Ft
Sherman, normally POVs. On Fridays it was still optional as to whether to go to
the Pacific side, however first formation Monday was held on the Pacific side
and the platoon was expected to be there.
In October 97 the platoon moved from
Bldg 30 to Bldg 210 to become part of the Forward Logistics Element (FLE).
During the first few cycles nothing changed aside from the barracks move. First
thing to change was the lock in for all FLE personnel during cycle. In early 98
a member of the FLE was involved in and accident with a POV near Margarita. Shortly after this the
use of POVs during cycle was prohibited. Next came a sober FLE soldier in the
NCO Club a female friend and a drunk rotational soldier
harassed the female and the sober FLE soldier broke the drunk rotational
soldiers jaw. Immediately thereafter drinking was prohibited. Several
rotational soldiers looking for a convient place to have sex with a prostitute chose Bldg 210. The
rotational soldiers were caught and the soldiers in the FLE lost their
visitation privileges, the visitation privileges were reinstated in the
following weeks.
Toward the end of 1998 the platoon
began to become more of a skeleton crew. The platoon now consisted of 1 Platoon
Leader, 1 Platoon Sergeant/Coxswain, 2 Coxswains, 3 Engineers and 3 Seamen. The
optempo began to slow as JOTB was also preparing for the move out
of Panama, the last scheduled rotation ended in March 1999. Around mid march
1999 the Platoon returned to the Pacific Side for the eekend and the following week as well. When the Platoon finally
returned it was discovered that all 3 LCMs had been sold and were no longer at
Fort Sherman. I know others lost a few personal items as well but I personally
lost 4 sets of coveralls, 3 pairs of boots and a ton of stuff I had acquired
over the 6 years I had been in Panama that I was planning on taking back to the
states. The Platoon cleared out all of the remaining maintenance parts in
Building 30 to be moved to the Pacific side as well as everything in Building
210. At long last, the 1097th said Adios to Fort Sherman. My last
visit to Sherman was after it had officially closed in late April 1999 and it
looked like a Ghost Town.
Bocas Del Toro
1996
In late 1995 the medium boat platoon
moved completely to Fort Sherman pending a mission that was going to happen in
Bocas Del Toro starting in January 1996 and ending around June 1996. The
platoon was going to have half of it’s assets and personnel at Fort Sherman and the other half was
going to be in Bocas Del Toro. The platoon under the Second Lieutenant William
Burke and Staff Sergeant Ronald Watkins was preparing by moving the required
provisions, repair parts, petroleum products, and whatever else that may be
needed to support this operation for such an extended period of time. The LCM
8501 and LCM 8582 were chosen as the vessels that would be deployed to Bocas
Del Toro for the entire mission. The personnel were to be rotated out every
month via an LCU 2000 making trips from Fort Sherman to Bocas Del Toro several
times per month.
On the afternoon of 2 January 1996
the LCMs and crews got underway for Bocas Del Toro arriving shortly after
sunrise the following day. Lieutenant Burke and Staff Sergeant Mike Diaz were
going to be in charge of the medium boat element in Bocas Del Toro. The platoon
set up their base camp next to the pier where the LCMs were moored in
Almirante, which was about 25 miles from the base camp of the reserve unit that
they were supporting. Initially the days were spent on site surveys of the
surrounding areas for suitable landing zones (LZs) to prepare to move the
reservist’s equipment.
After these site surveys were made
the platoon found out that the missions that they had been tasked to support
were being supported by a reserve LCU 2000. Instead of returning back to
Sherman the platoon began to take liberty in the bar right next to their base
camp, 24 hours a day. The deployment came to total failure when Lieutenant
Burke decided to start firing his personal 9mm pistol in the bushes and he
ended up getting thrown in jail.
The entire element was returned to
Fort Sherman and then back to the Pacific Side pending a court-martial of
Lieutenant Burke and Staff Sergeant Diaz. Staff Sergeant Watkins was in the
clear until he told specifically what everyone needed to write on their sworn
statements regarding the incident. Now he too was pending a court-martial for
his part of obstructing justice. Of all the personnel who were involved in this
incident, only two are still in the Army. Burke, Diaz, and Watkins were
convicted in the court-martial. Both Burke and Diaz were out of the Army before
the end of the year and Watkins received a "Letter Of Reprimand" and is still in the Army.
The Panama Canal Treaty Implementation Plan
Downsizing 1996
President Jimmy Carter and General
Omar Torrijos signed the Treaty in 1977, only a year after the arrival of
the 1097th to Panama the plan called for a slow and deliberate
downsizing of the military force in Panama to be completed 22 years later at
noon on 31 December 1999 at which time all United States Military presence
would be non-existent in Panama. In the 1097th, the downsizing was
initiated in 1996 under the command of Captain Frederick Stroker.
As stated in the prelude, the
company began its massive downsizing to reduce its force from 147 personnel to
61 personnel and from six LCMs, one J-boat and five LCUs to two LCUs and three
LCMs. This downsizing also reduced the company in other areas. The welding shop
was the first area to go, then the motor pool, and finally a large chunk of the
maintenance shop. Prescribed Load List (PLL) was turned in, the warehouse was
emptied, and more than 80 personnel were moved out of the company. Most went
back to Ft Eustis, where all boaties end up eventually but some, like the cooks and medics, went
to other companies within the 245th Support Battalion.
Almost unbelievably, the company set
records during this downsizing period by transporting more equipment than ever
before and completing more missions than thought possible. One other mission to
be highlighted was a trip to Golfito, Costa Rica. The trip included one LCU 2000 and one LCU
1600. The mission was to deliver engineering equipment for a nation building
exercise to a team of reservists known as Task Force Surenos. This was to be the last LCU 1600 mission in the 1097th.
Afterwards, the LCU the LCUs would be transferred to Kwajalien Missile Command Center in the Marshall Islands. The LCU
2018 and the LCU 1667 arrived in Costa Rica three days after leaving Rodman to
discover that it would be difficult for the much larger LCU 200 to find an
acceptable ramp to offload its rolling stock. The team agreed that they could
try a bridge causeway through the smaller LCU 1600 to the shore. The LCU 1600
has a rhino horn on the stern of the vessel and a stern ramp making if possible
to roll the equipment off the ramp of the LCU 2000 onto the stern of the LCU
1600 and finally onto the beach. Attempting this procedure once before in
Panama proved unsuccessful as is seemed too difficult a task to maneuver the
vessels into just the right positions. This time in Costa Rica, however, the
procedure was successful. This was the first time this procedure had been
successfully completed and the nation building exercise could now go on as
scheduled, thanks to the 1097th and the versatility of its vessels.
The company downsizing put a large
strain on the entire company, but positive attitudes continued to prevail,
especially after the announcement that the unit had received runner-up for the
NDTA award for its 1995 submission. In retrograding the LCMs, the company was able to use its own LCUs. The
first two of three LCMs went back on two separate missions in LCU well decks.
The final retrograde mission included the J-boat and the last LCM together. The
LCM was loaded into the welldeck
of the LCU and the J-boat was loaded into the well deck of the LCM. This
mission was categorized and is referred to as the "boat in a boat in a
boat" mission. The company continued to receive praise from the newspapers
and the command.
The Pina Beach Incident
1996
Early one morning on 27 July 1996
Sergeants Folk and Kelly in the LCM 8501 and LCM 8519, got underway from Fort Sherman to take some infantry passengers
from Sherman to Pina
Beach near the mouth of the Rio Chagres. At 0600 both vessels had reached Pina Beach, Folk beached first, the seas were 5 – 7 feet. Upon
the 8501, under Folk, hitting the beach the 8519, under Kelly, made his
approach as the 8519 was navigating the surfzone the 8501 was broached to the beach. The 8519 continued the
approach, being committed to beach at this point. As soon as the 8519 offloaded
the passengers it began to retract and was also broached. After two hours of
being stuck on the breach, and continuous attempts Kelly was able to free the
8519 using an unorthodox maneuver that he learned from his mentor, Folk, of
putting the LCM stern to the beach and heading out to open water.
Once free from the beach the 8519
anchored and had one of the crew swim to shore with a pilot line to take to the
8501 to be followed by a towing line. The 8519 tried unsuccessfully until the
engines began to die from low fuel and Kelly moved to the pier at the mouth of
the Chagres. From here he made the 6-mile hike back to the main part of Sherman
to make the call for help.
Relief elements did not arrive until
the evening, after it had gotten dark. An emergency fuel tanker was called to
fill the empty tanks on the 8519. Just after midnight the 8519, under the light
of a full moon, got underway with command elements on board to get an
assessment of the situation and make an attempt is possible. The 8501 was
nearly out of the water completely and it was decided that at first light. When
first light rolled around the 8519 got underway to make another attempt to pull
the 8501 off the beach.
As they had done the previous day
they anchored offshore and sent a swimmer to shore with a pilot line. Once the
towing line was secured aboard the 8501 the command insisted on securing the
other end on the 8519 to the side for safety reasons if the line parted. Kelly
said that he would be able to control the operation better if the line was
secured to the center, he was overridden. As predicted, once there was a strain
put on the towing line the 8519 only began to pendulum to the left. The towing
line was slacked for another attempt but the line was caught in the port screw
of the 8519 trying everything possible with no avail the 8519 was once again
broached to the beach. Armed with only a knife, the crew spent the entire day
cutting the line off of the screw in the pounding surf. Shortly after dark the
8519 was freed and the command ordered a commercial tug to pull the 8501 free.
The tug arrived on site the following
morning and it was decided to use a johnboat to take the pilot line from the
tug to the 8501. With Staff Sergeant Bill Deck operating and Sergeant First
Class John Shaddock assisting the johnboat left the tug and headed toward
shore. As soon as the johnboat entered the surfzone it capsized and nearly fractured Shaddock’s leg. He was
carried down the beach in running relays to the waiting 8519 for the short trip
across the Chagres to the waiting ambulance. The attempt was finished for the
day.
On the morning of Tuesday, 30 July
1996, the 8519 was sent out to the tug to pickup the towing hawser and cable and bring them to the range of
a line throwing gun of the beach allowing the personnel on the beach to haul
them to shore and attach them to the 8501. It took the 8519 over an hour to get
in range for the line-throwing gun to be fired. When they were finally in range
the line throwing gun was fired and the personnel on the beach were able to
attach the towing hawser to the 8501, which by now was completely out of the
water by 20 feet. The 8519 beached to pick up the personnel on the beach while
the tug began to pull the 8501. The 8501 was freed easily and towed to Limon
bay where the 8519 towed it the rest of the way back to Fort Sherman.
The command outlawed beaching at Pina after this incident. This, like the Russian Vessel
Incident, was a classic example of the command overreacting to a common
occurrence. Broaching LCMs was a part of any beaching operation. The Chain of
Command believed that this was the first time an LCM had ever been broached in
history.
The Last Days of the 1097th
1997 - 1999
In the remaining 2 years followed
the company continued the JOTB support and missions worldwide. One of the LCU’s
was sent to the shipyard and nearly remained there until the 1998. The
personnel assigned to the unit were starting to come down on orders for the
return to the states while others volunteered to stay until the very end. By
the time Fort Sherman shut down the Company had dwindled down to around 30
personnel assigned. The unit’s official Inactivation date was scheduled to be
on 24 May 1999 and the vast majority of the Unit leaving around this time and
the Final people to leave was scheduled to be in July 1999, long after the Unit
Inactivated. By the time I left on 2 May 1999 I was only one of 19 people
remaining in the greatest Transportation Unit of all time.
The 1097th is now gone
but will never be forgotten. The people that served the nearly 50 years of
service will never forget the accomplishments of the unit. There will always be
a special place in our hearts having been part of it. I know there was nothing
better in my Army career that the 1097th and she will always live on
forever.
Vaya
Con Dios 1097th.
Sean "Pirata" Kelly
21 July 2001
