United States Fifth Fleet

The Fifth Fleet of the United States Navy is responsible for naval forces in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and coast off East Africa as far south as Kenya. It shares a commander and headquarters with U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT). As of 2010^[update], the commander of the 5th Fleet is Vice Admiral Mark I. Fox.^[1] Fifth Fleet/NAVCENT is a component command of, and reports to, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM).

History

The Fifth Fleet was initially established on 26 April 1944 from Central Pacific Force under the command of Admiral Raymond Spruance. The ships of the Fifth Fleet also formed the basis of the Third Fleet, which was the designation of the "Big Blue Fleet" when under the command of Admiral William F. Halsey. Spruance and Halsey would alternate command of the fleet for major operations, allowing the other admiral and his staff time to prepare for the subsequent one. A secondary benefit was confusing the Japanese into thinking that they were actually two separate fleets as the fleet designation flipped back and forth. Following the end of World War II, the 5th Fleet was deactivated as an operational command echelon within the U.S. Navy.

Prior to the first Gulf War in 1990-1991, U.S. naval operations in the Persian Gulf region were directed by the Commander, Middle Eastern Force (COMMIDEASTFOR). Since this organization was considered insufficiently equipped to manage large scale combat operations during the Gulf War, the Seventh Fleet—primarily responsible for the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean and normally based in Japan—was given the temporary task of managing the force during the period. However, no numbered fleet existed permanently within the USCENTCOM area of responsibility. By July 1995, a new numbered fleet was deemed necessary.^[2] After a 48-year hiatus, the U.S. 5th Fleet was reactivated, replacing COMMIDEASTFOR, and it now directs operations in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, and Arabian Sea. Its headquarters are at NSA Bahrain located in Manama, Bahrain.

For the early years of its existence, its forces normally consisted of an Aircraft Carrier Battle Group (CVBG), an Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), surface combatants, submarines, maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft, and logistics ships. However, with the War on Terrorism, the naval strategy of the U.S. has changed. The regular deployments of the Cold War are now a thing of the past. Consequently, the policy of always maintaining a certain number of ships in various parts of the world is also over. However, its usual configuration now includes a Carrier Strike Group, Amphibious Ready Group or Expeditionary Strike Group, and other ships and aircraft with almost 15,000 people serving afloat and 1,000 support personnel ashore.^[3]

The forces of the 5th Fleet peaked in early 2003, when five USN aircraft carriers (CV and CVNs), six USN amphibious assault ships known as LHAs and LHDs and their embarked USMC air ground combat elements, their escorting and supply vessels, and over 30 Royal Navy vessels were under its command. In the aftermath of the fall of Baghdad in April 2003, the very large force of ships was quickly drawn down. Until and unless further very serious tensions occur in the area, forces are likely to remain at a lower level than has been the case in recent years.

During the 2011 Bahraini uprising, the presence of the 5th Fleet in Bahrain was a source of criticism toward the U.S. for its position as both a defender of human rights in the region and a traditional ally of the authoritarian Bahraini government. As a result, the U.S. government is reportedly contemplating closing its naval base in Bahrain and moving it to another Persian Gulf country, possibly Qatar or the United Arab Emirates, as of late July 2011.^[4]

Composition

• Task Force 50, Battle Force (~1 x Forward Deployed Carrier Strike Group)
• Task Force 51, Amphibious Force (~1 x Expeditionary Strike Group)/Expeditionary Strike Group Five/TF 59 (Manama, Bahrain)
• Task Force 52, mining/demining force
• Task Force 53, Logistics Force^[5]/Sealift Logistics Command Central, Military Sealift Command (MSC replenishment ships plus USN MH-53E Sea Stallion helicopters and C-130 Hercules, C-9 Skytrain II and/or C-40 Clipper aircraft)
• Task Force 54, (dual-hatted as Task Force 74) Submarine Force
• Task Force 55, Operation Iraqi Freedom: Constellation Carrier Strike Force; June 2003: mine clearing force, including elements from the U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program
• Task Force 56, Navy Expeditionary Combat Command force.^[6]
  • CTG 56.1 Explosive Ordnance Disposal / Expeditionary Diving and Salvage^[7]
  • CTG 56.2 Naval Construction Forces
  • CTG 56.3 Expeditionary Logistics Support; Provides logistics support for USN/USA/USMC, cargo movement and customs throughout AOR
  • CTG 56.4 Riverine; Provides riverineprotection of waterways from illegal smuggling of weapons, drugs and people
  • CTG 56.5 Maritime Expeditionary Security; Provides anti-Terrorism/Force Protection of land/port/littoral waterway operations for USN and Coalition assets, as well as point defense of strategic platforms and MSC vessels
  • CTG 56.6 Expeditionary Combat Readiness; Provides administrative “Sailor support” for all Individual Augmentees, and administers the Navy Individual Augmentee Combat Training Course and Warrior Transition Program
• Task Force 57, (dual-hatted as Task Force 72) Patrol and Reconnaissance Force (P-3 and EP-3 Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft)
  • Task Group 57.1
  • Task Group 57.2 - in October 2006, consisted of VP-8, VP-9, VP-16, and VP-46.^[8]
  • Note that as of October 13, 2011, Officer in Charge, Patrol and Reconnaissance Force Fifth Fleet Det Bahrain (COMPATRECONFORFIFTHFLT DET BAHRAIN (44468)) has been modified to Commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing FIVE SEVEN.^[9]
• Task Force 58, Maritime Surveillance Force (Northern Persian Gulf)
• Task Force 59, Expeditionary Force/Contingency Force (when required, e.g. July–August 2006 Lebanon evacuation operation, in conjunction with Joint Task Force Lebanon) In February 2007 it was conducting Maritime Security Operations^[10] and as of Nov. 2, 2007, it was running a crisis management exercise.

Coalition Forces Maritime Component Command

Together with Naval Forces Central Command, Fifth Fleet oversees five naval task forces monitoring maritime activity:

• Combined Task Force 158 in the North Persian Gulf that protects the Iraqi oil terminals of ABOT and KAAOT; now CTF IM [2]
• Combined Task Force 150 that patrols from Hormuz, halfway across the Arabia Sea, South as far as the Seychelles, through the Gulf of Aden, up through the strait between Djibouti and Yemen known as the Bab Al Mandeb and into the Red Sea and, finally, around the Horn of Africa;
• Combined Task Force 152 patrols the Persian Gulf from the northern end where area of responsibility of CTF 158 ends and down to the Strait of Hormuz between Oman and Iran where the area of responsibility for CTF 150 begins;
• CTF 151 patrols mostly the same area as CTF 150 but is primarily focused on deterring and disrupting Somalian pirate attack on leisure boats and commercial shipping;
• CTF 52 (as above) patrols the same area as CTF 152 but is focused on countermining/demining activity.^[11]

References

External links

• Official U.S. Fifth Fleet Web site
• Global Security