| Task Force 76 / Amphibious Force Seventh Fleet / Expeditionary Strike Group SEVEN | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1943 to present |
| Country | United States of America |
| Branch | United States Navy |
| Type | Expeditionary Strike Group |
| Role | Amphibious Operations |
| Part of | United States Seventh Fleet |
| Garrison/HQ | White Beach Naval Facility |
| Motto | Forward From the Sea |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Rear Admiral J. Scott Jones |
Expeditionary Strike Group SEVEN/Task Force 76 (Amphibious Force SEVENTH Fleet) is a United States Navy task force. It is at one and the same time operationally a Task Force of the United States Seventh Fleet and administratively, the USN's only permanently forward-deployed Expeditionary Strike Group. It is based out of White Beach Naval Facility at the end of the Katsuren Peninsula in Uruma City, Okinawa, Japan.
CTF 76 conducts operations throughout the U.S. Seventh Fleet area of operations, which includes the Western Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean.
Contents |
1943 – Task Force 76 formed and particiapted in Operation Chronicle, the landing at Lae, the landing at Scarlet Beach at Finschhafen, Battle of Arawe and Battle of Cape Gloucester on the island of New Britain,
1944 – Particiated in the landing at Saidor and Admiralty Islands campaign. Amphibious Group ONE is formed; participated in assault of Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Also seized Keramo Retto.
1950 – Supported UN during Korean War by stationing ships at Inchon and Wonsan.
1954 – CTF 76 participated in Passage to Freedom, the largest operation of its kind in history. Operation evacuated 310,000 people from communist-controlled North Vietnam to South Vietnam and carried 58,000 tons of cargo and humanitarian aid.
1965 – Participated in amphibious landings, assaults and demonstrations off the eastern coast of the Republic of Vietnam. Also cleared mines off the Vietnamese coast toward the end of the Vietnam War. Amphibious Ready Group Alpha, and its U.S. Marine contingent "Special Landing Force Alpha" or SLF-A often referred to as the "Sluff", during the Vietnam era) formed Task Group 76.4. TG 76.4 consisted of various support vessels, such as Landing Platform, Helicopter (LPHs) such as the USS Princeton (LPH-5), USS Okinawa (LPH-3) or USS Iwo Jima (LPH-2). Other vessels included LSTs (Landing Ship Tank) or LSD (Landing Ship Dock) supported a reinforced Marine Corps battalion referred to as a Battalion Landing Team (BLT). The Marine elements of the Group were referred to as Special Landing Force Alpha which itself consisted of the BLT and a Marine Helicopter Squadron. The ARG also included an Amphibious Group Command Ship (AGC) or the Amphibious Communication and Command Ship (LCC) which carried the Commander Amphibious Forces, Pacific Fleet and command and communications support facilities. Three AGCs and one LCC rotated to the Western Pacific and all four were involved in the amphibious landings by the LCC/AGC/SLF in Vietnam. The one LCC was USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) and the three AGCs were USS Eldorado (AGC-11), USS Estes (AGC-12) and USS Mount McKinley (AGC-7).
1975 – Rescued more than 100,000 people from Phnom Penh and Saigon (including in Operation Eagle Pull). Also assisted in recovery of the American-flagged SS Mayaguez after it was hijacked by the Cambodian Khmer Rouge in the Gulf of Thailand.
1983 – Transited to Suez Canal to support multi-national forces in Lebanon.
1999 – Belleau Wood Amphibious Ready Group completed no-notice five-month deployment to Persian Gulf for Operation Desert Fox.
2000 – USS Belleau Wood and USS Juneau complete humanitarian mission to East Timor supporting Australian-led forces. Continued missions until East Timor became 191st member of United Nations in 2002.
2004 – USS Essex and USS Fort McHenry deploy to Indonesia in support of Operation Unified Assistance to provide support and aid to the victims of the 26 Dec. tsunami in Southeast Asia.
2005 – Forward Deployed Amphibious Ready Group returns to Sasebo, Japan following unscheduled eight-month surge deployment to North Persian Gulf in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the Global War on Terrorism.
2005 – Forward Deployed ARG deploys for Fall Patrol. Conduct Amphibious Landing Exercise/Talon Vision (PHIBLEX/TV) 06 in the Republic of Philippines and then make a port visit to Hong Kong.
2006 – Forward Deployed ARG deploys for 5-month Spring Patrol, participating in TRUEX/MUEX in Guam, Balikatan 06 in the Republic of Philippines, Foal Eagle 06 in the Republic of Korea (ROK) and Cobra Gold in the Kingdom of Thailand.
2006 – USS Patriot and embarked Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 5 Detachment (Det) 51 complete Summer Patrol throughout Southeast Asia, participating in Cobra Gold and WP-MCMEX in Malaysia, while making port visits to Brunei, Vietnam, Singapore and Hong Kong.[1]
2009 - Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief mission to Padang, Indonesia.
2011 - Coordinated Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief efforts in support of Operation Tomodachi.
United States-based Amphibious Ready Groups which pass through the U.S. Seventh Fleet area of operations fall under the operational control of CTF 76.
| • Rear Adm. J. Scott Jones | (8 April 2011 – Present) | |
| • Rear Adm. Richard B. Landolt | (23 June 2008 – 8 April 2011) | |
| • Rear Adm. Carol M. Pottenger | (7 November 2006 – 23 June 2008) |