Mighty Ships 35 Uss New York
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00:01She's one of the most advanced amphibious warships on the planet.
00:09The U.S. Navy and Marines fighting as one force by sea, land and air.
00:21Built to honor the victims of 9-11.
00:25This ship is a symbol of freedom.
00:27This team has just three weeks to prove they're ready for frontline action.
00:32It is like the little before the storm, yes.
00:44USS New York is one of the U.S. Navy's newest amphibious assault vessels.
00:50She's a San Antonio-class landing platform dock, made to load and sail 850 Marines.
00:58Along with their artillery, armored carriers, hovercrafts, trucks,
01:04even attack and transport helicopters.
01:07However, USS New York has yet to be deployed.
01:12For the next 21 days, the brand-new ship and her crew are on the move.
01:19Her crew will be tested as never before.
01:22These latest maneuvers before deployment will culminate in a nighttime amphibious assault.
01:30Commanding this state-of-the-art assault vessel is the captain, William Herman.
01:38And you got five knots going, you can use a little more rudder in there.
01:43We can launch Marines anywhere in the world.
01:46That's the benefit of being in the Navy.
01:48International water starts at 12 miles, so I can pull into 12 miles of anybody's coast,
01:53and then from there, send my Marines ashore.
01:56USS New York is 208 meters long,
01:59and can reach a reported maximum speed of 22 knots, or 40 kilometers an hour.
02:05She has two 30-millimeter cannons to handle sea water.
02:09She has two 30-millimeter cannons to handle surface threats,
02:13and missile launchers to nullify air attacks.
02:20Built for stealth, the shape of her hull and her paint job allow her to avoid detection by enemy radar.
02:27At her stern is the well deck,
02:31the gateway to load and launch hovercrafts and amphibious vessels.
02:39Up above, she has a 1,900-square-meter flight deck that can launch any helicopter in the U.S. Navy.
02:49But what makes USS New York unique is the seven tons of steel that form her bow stem,
02:56salvaged from the wreckage of the 9-11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.
03:02It's a ship that built out of this metal.
03:04It's got DNA from New Yorkers, firemen, policemen, people, from all walks of life, from all creeds and religion.
03:10It's here. It's in this metal. It's part of this ship.
03:15This ship, you've got to feel it. It's different here.
03:23All through the ship stand reminders and artifacts of that deadly strike on American soil.
03:29Metal reclaimed from the rubble of the World Trade Center.
03:33A steel beam from the Twin Towers.
03:37Gifts from the mayor of New York City.
03:42There's a different feel on board the ship.
03:45I like to think we have about 2,900 souls on board that are helping, guiding us to execute our mission.
03:53These are all of the people that died that day.
03:56This is Lieutenant Commander Volk.
03:59Lieutenant Colonel to Karen Wagner.
04:02William Howard Donovan, Commander Patrick Dunn.
04:05Steve Mercado was a school friend of mine.
04:09He was a fireman at Engine 40.
04:11We got to be pretty close.
04:16South Aerosmith, navigation, what's your on track?
04:19USS New York is just months away from her first deployment.
04:22The exact time and destination are classified.
04:26For now, she's stationed at Moorhead City, North Carolina.
04:32From here, she'll set out for three weeks of maneuvers,
04:35on and offshore, along the coast of Virginia and North Carolina.
04:40But first, New York will load 1,100 tons of equipment, in double quick time.
04:46New York will load 1,100 tons of equipment, in double quick time.
04:53Let's get that from the bridge, please.
04:55The pressure mounts for First Lieutenant Troy Rose, who supervises the well deck.
05:00Just this spot's an issue.
05:02I've been doing this for almost 26 years, you know,
05:05and all different kinds of platforms from destroyers, you name it, you know.
05:08I used to drive the boats when I was young.
05:11I never want to leave.
05:13Troy and his team have 10 hours to load 230 pieces of military hardware,
05:18everything from howitzer cannons to containers of pre-packaged meals.
05:26We've got a load plan, we need to execute the load plan,
05:28and every now and then something doesn't work, something doesn't start,
05:31guess what, we've got to either tow it or make a decision to leave it behind.
05:43Working into the night, the loading team packs the Marines' cargo,
05:47making the 10-hour deadline with minutes to spare.
05:53The next morning,
05:56USS New York leaves Moorhead City.
06:01Her first test starts immediately.
06:04It's a job that can only be handled by an amphibious dock ship.
06:07It's a job that can only be handled by an amphibious dock ship.
06:11To pick up the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit from an undisclosed beach location,
06:16plus their 14 floating armored carriers, known as AAVs,
06:21as well as dozens of vehicles, artillery and hardware.
06:26The exact list of gear is top secret.
06:31So the operation we're doing this afternoon
06:33is recovering all of our amphibious assault vehicles,
06:36and in order to do that effectively,
06:38the ship has to be positioned fairly precisely.
06:41The AAVs can only swim a certain distance out,
06:44so we're very close to shore, just about two miles off, in very shallow water.
06:49To accomplish this recovery, New York will use her well deck,
06:53the heart and soul of this ship.
06:56If you're looking for a primary weapon, this is our weapon, is our well deck.
07:00Our ability to come up in here and receive and get these Marines back to the beach,
07:03that's really what this ship is all about.
07:07The well deck is located at the stern of the ship.
07:12Massive ballast tanks lower New York,
07:15sinking the well deck up to three and a half meters below the waterline.
07:21Opening the stern gate transforms this vast space
07:24into a landing dock for amphibious vehicles.
07:27If I was not in an amphib and I had waters like that,
07:30I'd be finding my life raft.
07:37It'll take you 15 minutes.
07:39The ship's bosun, Chief Warrant Officer Keith Shaw, is Troy's connection deck.
07:51Ah, he's mean as a dog.
07:54He bites. I'm the nice one. He's the one that bites.
07:58Let's rock, let's go!
08:00This is a training exercise, but the dangers of the well deck are always present.
08:07A lot of times when we train, we train in combat systems with, you know, mock scenarios,
08:12and it basically is a little simulator and stuff like here,
08:15but deck doesn't simulate nothing. Everything we do is for real.
08:18If we make a mistake, somebody could get hurt or killed, and it's happened.
08:23Keith Shaw knows that as well as anyone,
08:25so when it comes to docking these carriers,
08:27he and his crew prepare for the worst-case scenario.
08:32They're designed to float on top of water, but they have a propensity to sink sometimes,
08:36so we have to really keep an eye on them.
08:38That's why we have to launch two safety boats to follow them all the way to us.
08:49As the first of the AAVs approach, the well deck crew is on full alert.
08:56Ultimately, I want to get them to come in here safely.
08:59That's the goal. That is the objective.
09:02The first armoured carrier makes it on board.
09:05Thirteen more to go.
09:08But then Keith Shaw gets a heads up.
09:11The game plan has changed.
09:21Three of the AAVs have mechanical problems.
09:24They can't reach USS New York on their own.
09:29So we got three of them returning to the beach, correct?
09:31Affirm.
09:34The AAVs belong to the Marines,
09:36but it's the sailors who have to figure out how to bring them aboard.
09:42He's a Marine.
09:44He can show us 20 million ways to kill us, but only on the beach.
09:48That's why they have us.
09:52So what is actually big enough to transport a stranded armoured carrier?
09:57An LCAC, short for Landing Craft Air Cushion.
10:03New York has two of these hovercrafts,
10:05and they're already moving other gear from the beach to the ship.
10:1026 metres long, generating 16,000 horsepower.
10:14They're big enough to carry eight Humvees.
10:18Now one of these LCACs will have to transport the disabled armoured carriers.
10:23But it will mean extra trips and possible delays.
10:28We're in. Send it out.
10:31It's going to be coming back on the LCAC.
10:32It'll be coming back on the LCAC.
10:34The crew have to prove they can handle it without missing a beat.
10:40Both those LCACs are pre-loaded,
10:41so we're going to have to get them back on the LCAC.
10:45Both those LCACs are pre-loaded,
10:46so we're going to have to unload one of the LCACs to do that.
10:50Yeah, they're going to have to unload it.
10:51The Marines start unloading one of the LCAC hovercrafts
10:54to take on the three AAVs.
10:59Powering 20.
11:00We can do that.
11:02Keith Shaw ensures the last of the functioning carriers
11:05docks safely into the well deck.
11:10Can't afford to have a bad day.
11:12If we have a bad day,
11:13somebody don't go home to their loved ones.
11:15So take what we do very seriously.
11:19In debark control,
11:20Troy Rose gives the order to drain the well deck
11:23and clear out the carriers to make room for the two incoming LCACs.
11:28Where are we at with our ballast?
11:30We're at two feet right now.
11:33Copy.
11:36The well deck is drained.
11:37The Marines can unload and park their massive armoured carriers
11:41in the ship's upper storage decks.
11:50Now the hovercraft with the last AAV leaves the beach
11:53and heads for the ship.
12:03Finally, all the AAVs have made it on board.
12:06Couple heavy men.
12:07We can continue on with the mission now.
12:11Good.
12:12Yeah, come on, come on.
12:13Bring them up.
12:16Marine mechanics will bring these AAVs back to full working order.
12:23Then the LCACs return to the beach
12:25to bring the remaining gear to the well deck.
12:28With that, New York sailors and Marines pass their first test.
12:36Overall, everybody kept their fingers and toes
12:39and we were successful.
12:40We completed the mission.
12:42This is just day one.
12:44Readily, readily. All hands eval.
12:46Three more weeks of hard training lie ahead.
12:56Training off the North Carolina coast,
12:58Marines and sailors aboard the USS New York
13:01are undergoing final preparations for deployment
13:04to one of the most dangerous regions on the planet.
13:08All right, guys, get ready to go.
13:11From the steel in her bow, to her motto, to her name,
13:17this ship honors the victims from the worst attack
13:20carried out on American soil.
13:23All right, so let's call me Gunny Lobo and then we'll...
13:27For Command Master Chief Rafael Perez,
13:29a New Yorker born and raised,
13:31the connection to 9-11 is especially intense.
13:34All along the ship we have pictures of the Twin Towers
13:38before they fell that day.
13:43When I found out that they were naming the ship
13:45the USS New York after the state of New York,
13:49you know, you can take the New Yorker out of New York,
13:52but you can't take the New York out of the New Yorker.
13:56Rafael Perez keeps a close eye on discipline and morale.
14:01Hi, Chief. It's a calm before the storm, huh?
14:03Oh, yeah.
14:04Look at the seas. Look how flat the seas are.
14:07As the senior enlisted sailor on board,
14:09he's the personal link between the commissioned officers
14:12and the enlisted personnel.
14:14Staying out of trouble?
14:15Absolutely.
14:16All right.
14:17We had a couple of uncles that worked in the Trade Center, so...
14:20Did they make it out?
14:22One did not, Master Chief.
14:23One did not? Who was that?
14:25Joe Maloney.
14:26He was your uncle and he got killed?
14:28He did.
14:29So your uncle's part of our crew and we're glad to have you.
14:32Thank you, Master Chief.
14:33All right? Thanks. Thanks for serving.
14:35You know, this ship is part of bringing the fight to the enemy,
14:39making sure that those people didn't die in vain.
14:45Cabin, Cabin.
14:46Just a rundown on how we're going to do the gun shoot this morning.
14:50On the second day at sea,
14:51Captain Herman is testing New York's devastating firepower.
14:55The end of this barrel, you can see, screws in right here.
14:59And his crew,
15:00some of whom have never fired live ammunition.
15:03Other way.
15:04What's that?
15:05Other way.
15:06And you're going to slam that top shot.
15:09It's easy, trust me.
15:12In a real-world situation,
15:13I don't want to pull the trigger and hear click and that bang.
15:17When the time comes for it to happen for real,
15:20we know that when we pull the trigger,
15:21the round's going to go down the barrel and land right where we want it to.
15:25First, they fire the .50 caliber machine guns.
15:30Firing up to 600 rounds per minute,
15:33these guns can cut through metal and even concrete.
15:38You can't lose them in there.
15:39The .50 caliber guns and the crew pass the test.
15:44Go. You're good.
15:49Now it's time for the big guns.
15:51Come back, Cabin.
15:52Two 30 millimeter cannons,
15:54capable of firing up to 200 rounds a minute,
15:58they can destroy a target two kilometers away.
16:03Gun salute looks good. Camera looks good.
16:05To begin, the captain calls for a single round.
16:09Okay, my intent is with the ten rounds for 301 and 302
16:13to fire them individually
16:14and to start off with a single shot and then three three-round bursts.
16:18How copy?
16:20Start with about 301.
16:21One single round and three three-round bursts. Aye.
16:26About 301. Batteries release.
16:36Straight away, there's a problem.
16:38Two rounds are fired.
16:40Not what he ordered.
16:42For now, the test continues.
16:46Roger. Thank you.
16:47But the captain demands an explanation.
16:50Yeah, it's fine.
16:51The one concern I have is that first round that we did,
16:53we did a single shot and two rounds went out.
16:56So there's a couple of settings on it.
16:58While it was set in single shot,
17:00the way the gun operator has to manipulate the joystick for it,
17:04sometimes more than one round would come out.
17:09In a real battle scenario,
17:11orders need to be followed to the letter.
17:14A mistake could mean the difference between victory and defeat.
17:19Day 5 at sea for USS New York.
17:22Flight quarters, flight quarters.
17:24All hands maintain flight quarters stations.
17:26Wear no cover, stop sight.
17:27Throw no articles over the side.
17:29The ship is suddenly ordered to raid and capture a hostile cargo vessel.
17:34Let's start planning it.
17:35We want to be off the quarter so we can start counting down.
17:37Although only an exercise, it's the equivalent of a final exam.
17:45When this exercise is over,
17:46we're going to go overseas.
17:47We're going to be forward deployed
17:48where this won't be a training mission,
17:50it'll be a real world mission.
17:51And that's when lives are truly at stake.
17:53And then we'll come off their port side,
17:55so we'll come off their starboard side, so it's our port side.
17:58Man the boat deck.
18:00Man the boat deck.
18:02Looking good.
18:03Hold one, check two.
18:06As the Navy prepares their speed boats
18:08to bring the assault force to the target,
18:10the Marines prepare their gear to seize the cargo vessel.
18:14That role is played by a U.S. Navy fueling ship.
18:18Right now what we're planning for is a bottom-up assault.
18:21Our boats are going to come alongside,
18:23and in conjunction with that,
18:24the helicopters will come in and do a helicopter assault
18:27with fast-row Marines that'll come down.
18:30All right, guys, we're ready to go.
18:31It is always dangerous aborting another vessel
18:33because it's an unknown.
18:34You don't know what's on board.
18:37The plan is to innocently sail past the enemy ship
18:41as if nothing is happening.
18:43Helicopters and speed boats will follow, hidden from view.
18:47Then as New York appears to move on,
18:49the assault force will be launched against the cargo ship.
18:53New York will turn around and follow,
18:55ready to recover the choppers and boats.
18:58Boarding the hostile boat,
18:59we don't know what's going to happen.
19:00We can pull up alongside, they can start shooting at us.
19:04Hey! Hey!
19:05Man on the ladder.
19:09The trap has been set.
19:11Everything has been planned down to the minute,
19:14so executing that on time is key.
19:18New York appears to be sailing past completely unconcerned.
19:26Speed boats and helicopters follow out of sight,
19:30every Marine waiting for the command to go.
19:39Okay, right now we just got word over the radio
19:41the helicopter assault force is going to be pushing to the objective.
19:51Two sets of Marines attack the ship from the water and the air.
19:57Left 50 degrees, helicopter 0-0-0.
20:00Very well.
20:01Aviation bosun's mate, Dustin Shipman,
20:05Aviation bosun's mate, Dustin Shipman,
20:07is the air tower's eyes and ears.
20:10Nothing moves on the flight deck without him knowing about it.
20:15Now we got three aircraft in the air.
20:17We're getting ready to start these other two aircraft up,
20:19top them off with fuel and get them out there
20:21so they can relieve the guys we just lost.
20:25It's all going according to plan, until now.
20:29They've encountered resistance on board the ship.
20:31One of the team members has received a gunshot wound,
20:33not sure the level of severity at this point in time.
20:39The wounded Marine is taken off the hostile ship by chopper.
20:46And we're getting this footage from one of the helicopters
20:49that are right off of their starboard beam.
20:53Right now you're looking at one of the teams on the main deck of the ship.
20:56See a subject that appears to be hostile,
20:59and what they're going to do is they're going to subdue the subject.
21:03Still doing eight?
21:05This is a major show of force, and that's what this is designed to.
21:08It's kind of the shock and awe kind of thing.
21:14The ship has been seized and the enemy is captured.
21:17The Marines and Navy have complete control.
21:22The main challenges were the timing,
21:23making sure that everything is happening on time as it's supposed to,
21:26so all of the coordination, all the synchronization
21:28between all the different players happen at the same time as it's supposed to.
21:32Back aboard USS New York, the Marines are still pumped up from their mission.
21:44In a few months' time, these same soldiers from the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit
21:49will be sailing on USS New York to a trouble spot or even a war zone.
21:55Admiral, I need you and Rendo to come down here where I'm at.
21:59And to prepare for that day, the training never relents.
22:04Yo, keep coming. You got three feet. Keep coming.
22:12Aboard USS New York, 360 sailors are training and living alongside 850 Marines.
22:20What's going on? Cairns, how you doing?
22:23Where you from?
22:24To keep these troops in line,
22:26sometimes Commander Master Chief Rafael Perez has to crack the whip.
22:31The smoke pit has become a complete s**t pit.
22:34And I'm tired of deck division having to clean up after every smoker on this ship.
22:39You better take charge of that smoke pit area,
22:41because if you don't, I will secure it with the captain's permission
22:45and the next cigarette you'll have may be in Moorhead City.
22:48Action. Carry on.
22:55Every day, this training mission brings USS New York closer to her first deployment.
23:02The Marines are now practicing another launch from the well deck
23:05with their enormous hovercrafts and 26-ton armored carriers.
23:16Marine Gunnery Sergeant Jesse Murphy can't believe they really float.
23:23The 26-ton AAB, in my mind, we should not float.
23:30But somebody with a lot bigger brain than me designed it with water displacement,
23:37just like a ship. That's what keeps it floating.
23:42Jesse Murphy is lucky. He sits up on top.
23:46The Marines down below have a different experience.
23:50They bring their helmets because they tend to get seasick.
23:56It's a closed environment. When you're in a closed environment,
24:00you can't see a whole lot going on around you.
24:02It kind of gives you the woozy feeling.
24:07Then, in the middle of this maneuver, a surprise test.
24:14A landing craft utility, or LCU, is inbound from a sister ship.
24:20The well deck crew has to dock this massive transport vessel quickly.
24:2641 meters long, 380 tons fully loaded,
24:30it's by far the biggest and heaviest craft they will ever have to handle.
24:36But they've never attempted it before.
24:39How bad was it?
24:41First Lieutenant Troy Rose oversees anything coming into or leaving this critical space.
24:48They're trying to keep us on our toes right now.
24:51They're changing our day all the time.
24:54Every time I think I have a plan, they try to trick us up a little bit.
24:58But that's okay.
25:00Are you going to be on the scene?
25:02The AAVs sitting in the well deck have to be cleared out immediately.
25:06Fisher, is your hatch locked?
25:09Some deploying into the sea, and others moving to an upper deck.
25:13It's got to be out of the way. All that stuff will be moved.
25:16You got how many people?
25:17Fifty-four.
25:18We'll get this out of the way, we'll get this out of the way.
25:26All right, Wellens, go ahead and get dressed out.
25:30Once the well deck is clear, Bosun Keith Shaw and his crew ramp up for their big test,
25:36docking a transport vessel so big it can carry 400 Marines.
25:41In ballast control, the crew starts pumping in 3,000 extra cubic meters of water
25:46to sink the well deck to the necessary three meters.
25:49He doesn't want to let us lower it.
25:51193.2 is also at 21,000, sir.
25:54Align your D-becks to those tanks.
25:56We're crossing the seal, crossing the seal.
26:00And over line two, over line two, that's the first line that we send over.
26:05Line two is going to break the craft's forward momentum.
26:09It's going to be susceptible to the waves once it gets inside this control environment.
26:16If the LCU hits the walls, it could seriously damage the ship.
26:22Hey, slack out all lines.
26:25There you go. Hold it like that.
26:28In this first encounter with an LCU, no one was injured and nothing was damaged.
26:34But there's still more to do.
26:37Hey, let's go ahead and put that ramp down. Put that ramp down.
26:41Now the well deck crew has to unload an amphibious supply vehicle.
26:52I can't afford to relax. Cannot afford to relax.
26:56The problem is this vehicle doesn't just look like a bathtub.
27:00It drives like one, too.
27:02Got to turn a complete circle and then back him out.
27:08Turn him hard. Turn him hard.
27:11Keep coming. He's got three feet.
27:14Keep coming. Keep coming.
27:17At last, the crew finds a proper parking space for this unwieldy beast.
27:26All right, control. We just satisfied the requirement. We just turned him around.
27:30No rest. None.
27:33The USS New York, an amphibious assault ship,
27:36is designed specifically for both the U.S. Navy and the Marines.
27:40This ship was designed and built to carry Marines and to bring the force of war.
27:45Neither one of us are really at our peak when we're separate.
27:48But you bring the two of us together and there's very few missions we can't accomplish.
27:52And being able to do that on a daily basis is why I love my job.
27:56Today, New York's crew of Marines and sailors
27:59prepares to airlift a massive piece of artillery from their flight deck to shore.
28:06Stretching out some 10 meters and weighing a daunting 4 tons,
28:10this howitzer cannon can demolish an entire ship.
28:14The howitzer cannon can demolish targets up to 25 kilometers away.
28:19Since World War II, it has been essential firepower on any beach landing.
28:24Really the reason we're doing this is to show that we can provide
28:27all of the logistical support that the forces ashore would need from the sea.
28:32This is the first time New York's flight deck crew has staged a howitzer for an airlift.
28:37That's why the Navy captain and the Marine executive officer are here to see it for themselves.
28:43I've done a Humvee off the big deck before. I've never done a howitzer before.
28:47So it'll be fun.
28:49We're just going to do one today, sir,
28:51because we know that we can get the other one out to spot two.
28:54Directly in charge is the airboss, Lieutenant Tommy Clark, a Navy helicopter pilot.
29:00He's usually stationed up in the control tower, but today he roams the flight deck.
29:06This right here is what we do for a living.
29:08This moving on the deck, staging the deck, moving birds around,
29:12making space for equipment to come up and get flown off.
29:15The first part of this obstacle course is to move the howitzer out from the storage deck,
29:20up a steep ramp to the flight deck.
29:22At four tons, the guns are difficult to move on dry land,
29:26let alone airlift from a moving ship.
29:29We've got to create space.
29:31This is a multi-spot ship, but it's not very big.
29:34So we've got six spots on here, two mains and four expanded spots.
29:39So we've got to constantly make room.
29:41But they don't just need space for the howitzer.
29:43They also need enough room for the helicopter to be able to make an emergency landing if necessary.
29:50I didn't realize it was that long.
29:52His first location doesn't work out.
29:55I don't think there's going to be enough room.
29:57I did not get a nice fade.
29:59After more trial and error, Tommy Clark and his team decide to stage the howitzer near the ship's stern.
30:07Right here, right in the middle.
30:12Now it's time for the big lift.
30:18He's in his usual seat in the air tower, directing traffic.
30:23Three-zero, you have a green deck.
30:25Two, break and launch analysis.
30:28A CH-53 Super Stallion will lift the massive howitzer.
30:33This is the largest, heaviest helicopter in the Navy,
30:37boasting three engines, generating 13,000 horsepower.
30:43A crew member uses a grounding rod to discharge the chopper's static electricity.
30:52The crew attaches the Stallion's swings to the howitzer.
30:56Currently holding winds off the bow at 18 knots in the envelope.
31:00In a real firefight, getting Marines this weapon in time
31:04could make all the difference.
31:11The following morning, new orders come in to seek and destroy an enemy ship.
31:17Another Navy vessel is standing in for the target.
31:20They've already been identified as this is a hostile ship or a hostile track,
31:24and it's already been cleared to fire against them and to sink them.
31:29But it's not going to be easy.
31:31The enemy ship starts jamming New York's GPS system.
31:34GPS one, and we switch to GPS two, and we have no GPS two on her.
31:38The crew has to manually track their course.
31:43And the chase begins.
31:51Green deck.
31:52The captain sends out an armed Cobra for a closer inspection.
31:56And a few minutes later, the Cobra is in the air.
32:01A possible missile attack.
32:10Unleashing 40,000 horsepower from her four engines,
32:14USS New York hits 22 knots and closes in on the enemy ship.
32:19The captain readies his guns for a strike.
32:22So between our weapons and the airborne weapons,
32:25we should be able to take out the target.
32:27Make sense?
32:31At last, the enemy ship is in range.
32:34New York is ready to deliver a devastating assault.
32:42Combat captain, let me know when you have a clear range fire.
32:45Batteries released, mount 302.
32:47The entire exercise is simulated.
32:50They go through the motions without actually firing a single hot round.
32:56Cease fire, cease fire, cease fire.
32:58But in the simulation, the crew and ship have completed their mission.
33:02We sank it.
33:03We destroyed it.
33:04Between my weapons on board the ship
33:06as well as everything that the Cobra shot at it,
33:09it was more than it could handle.
33:11So it's nothing but a burning hulk that's slowly sinking.
33:14Let's go run our midships.
33:16Run our midships!
33:23It's been another long day for the crew.
33:26But down below, a treat awaits.
33:28The biggest American football game of the year.
33:31And the ship's galley has prepared a Super Bowl feast.
33:35It's an opportunity for us to kind of step back,
33:37socialize a little before we get into the next phase,
33:40which is a pretty intense phase
33:42to carry us through to the end of the exercise.
33:45They'll need all the morale they can get.
33:48That's because the next mission
33:50will be the biggest air and amphibious assault
33:53USS New York has ever tackled.
34:01For the sailors and marines on board USS New York,
34:04three long weeks of training come down to a final mission,
34:08the toughest of all.
34:12To launch a full-scale assault on an enemy beach,
34:16find a building hiding a weapons cache,
34:19overcome hostile resistance, and destroy the cache.
34:23If we're thinking of this as a plan, who should go first?
34:26In this armed exercise,
34:28New York will sail to within 2 nautical miles of the shore
34:32and drop scouts in speedboats
34:34who will go ashore and survey the landing zone.
34:37New York will retreat to international waters,
34:4012 nautical miles from shore.
34:42Then fully loaded LCACs will take marines and their gear
34:46to storm the beach at night.
34:48LCAC will return to the ship for another load.
34:51At every stage, helicopters will provide air cover.
34:55Now we just have to execute and pull it off.
34:58Phase 1 of the invasion.
35:00Grab rest before the operations commence.
35:06Then, with New York moving at about 8 knots,
35:09marine scouts move to the edge of the open ocean.
35:18As New York approaches the drop-off point,
35:20with the sun setting, the stern gate is lowered
35:23and the scouts disembark.
35:27They head for the target, almost 4 km away.
35:31New York then pulls back over the horizon
35:34and out of enemy sight.
35:37Rightful rudder, steady on course 255.
35:39Rightful rudder, steady on course 255I.
35:42The captain has to wait for the scouts' intelligence
35:45before the invasion force is launched.
35:47I kind of have to weigh all of those risks
35:50and make sure that I have the ship positioned
35:52in the right spot to be able to accomplish the mission
35:54on the timeline that the marines have,
35:56and yet still keep the ship New York safe
35:58from any of the other threats that are out there.
36:01Down below, the invasion force gears up for action.
36:05I'll be coming on time.
36:07Right now it's time to rock and roll.
36:09When they tell us to launch, launch, launch,
36:11we're going to launch and we're going to make sure
36:13they make the beach at that time,
36:15so everything has to hit the beach at the same time.
36:17Yes, because if we go in there and we take too long,
36:20they're going to know that we're coming
36:22and they're going to get as many reinforcements as they can
36:25and try taking out as many of us in the process.
36:28Four L.A.V.s to Humvee and back to beach.
36:31Okay, you guys just got refueled, right?
36:33You're not getting any gas tonight?
36:34No, sir.
36:39Marine Combat Cargo Officer John Paul Ciamaro
36:42works with Keith Shaw to direct the traffic
36:44from the storage decks to the waiting LCACs.
36:47Cesar, where are you going? You're parking them here?
36:50All right, you're going... He's going right here.
36:52That's fine. Okay, that's fine.
36:54Have you been told where you're going?
36:56On the blacked-out bridge, Captain Herman
36:59receives an intelligence report
37:01from the Marine scouts on the beach.
37:06New York's invasion force is cleared to launch.
37:11All right, let's go, green deck.
37:15Transport and attack helicopters take off to provide air cover.
37:25In the well deck, LCACs loaded with fully-armed Marines
37:29leave for the beach.
37:35This is Bumper 2-0, be wet.
37:38Off to a full load on Deck 8, Humvee.
37:41Deck 8-0, souls on board.
37:43En route to the beach, Humvee.
37:45The Marines have left,
37:47but the well deck crew can't take a break.
37:54They must have the next load ready when the hovercraft returns.
37:57Let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go.
38:04We're three to five minutes behind right now,
38:07so I've got to make that tie rope right now
38:09on how well I get the vehicles down there,
38:11get a position for when the LCACs come back.
38:14You can't be on a ramp as it's going to come down
38:17because if that AAV loses its brakes,
38:19it's going to go right down and crush him and kill him.
38:22You can't be on that incline like that.
38:26I mean, there's a lot of things moving.
38:28The ship is moving, the ship is rocking.
38:30We've got weather, we've got people coming in and going.
38:33We're going to use every little bit of the time that we have.
38:36We kind of expected that already.
38:38Corporal Davis, get everybody that doesn't need to be here back.
38:46So, Hopper 1-5 is in route.
38:49We're going to pick up its cargo,
38:51which is going to be those two seven-tons right in front of us.
38:53Go back out, take those vehicles to the beach.
38:57Seven knots.
39:03With no time to spare, the well-decked crew loads two seven-ton trucks
39:07and more Marines onto the waiting LCAC.
39:14We made pretty good time with that.
39:16I was concerned initially because we kind of fell behind in the timeline,
39:19three to five minutes.
39:21But we made up the time, as you guys can see.
39:23Everything the Marines need for their invasion is headed to the beach.
39:27This operation is classified.
39:30The Marines cannot divulge any details about troop numbers or tactics.
39:34But one thing is certain.
39:36Their performance here will determine whether they're ready for a real firefight.
39:48Out at sea, Airbus Tommy Clark is controlling air traffic.
39:54His helicopters are continually returning from the beach for refueling.
39:59Suddenly, he gets word of wounded Marines.
40:02The report was two injured pretty badly.
40:06The injuries are simulated,
40:08but medical teams and air crews still need to react with split-second timing.
40:14We just got our section of a Cobra and a Huey back
40:20with some of the troops that were injured.
40:24It's 10 o'clock at night.
40:26The Marines have been ashore for four hours.
40:29In the well deck, the crew waits for word of success or failure.
40:34We're waiting for those guys to show up, but they just actually closed the stern gate.
40:37We're not sure what's going on.
40:39It's an anxious time.
40:40Despite being 22 kilometers from the beach,
40:43everyone here is completely invested in the mission.
40:48Around midnight, they get news from the bridge.
40:52I'm hoping they come over the radio and let us know that they're inbound.
40:55The Marines are coming back.
40:57The virtual weapons cache has been found and destroyed.
41:01It's mission accomplished.
41:08It has been a long day. It went really well, though.
41:13We're trying to destroy that enemy weapon cache.
41:16So, very successful.
41:18The Marines did really well, as well as the LCAT crews.
41:21They did really good.
41:24Good to be home on the ship.
41:28We're a team. We're family.
41:30And we're ready to do what the nation calls on us for.
41:37Three weeks of high-stakes training has come to a close.
41:43New York's crew and their comrades from the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit
41:48were pushed to the limit.
41:51At every turn, they proved they're ready for the real front lines
41:55on a faraway shore.
41:58The next day, the Marines depart.
42:06They leave the same way they arrived.
42:09By hovercraft and floating armored carriers.
42:13Headed to their base at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
42:20But they'll soon be back to join their Navy brothers and sisters
42:23for their first deployment.
42:27On board a ship out of the ashes of 9-11.
42:32This ship was built on lost lives.
42:35The people that died on that day were depending on us.
42:39The people that are living in that city right now and the whole world
42:42are actually depending on us to make sure that we get it right.
42:46This ship represents something more than just a USS naval warship.
42:51We represent the hope of tomorrow.
42:55This ship is built from 9-11.
42:57I mean, the steel that fell is risen again where the phoenix came out of that fire.
43:01I think the world knows that.
43:04I think I'm damn proud of it.
43:06The only way that I could somehow make a difference
43:10for what happened is to serve on this ship.
43:13That's my contribution.
43:19USS New York bringing together the US Marines and Navy
43:24into one fighting force.
43:28They will serve by their motto.
43:31Never forget.
44:01U.S. Money Reserve