Baltic deployment, Anti-drug operations and a third consecutive Battle "E"

The tradition of excellence continued under Dave Schwiering's command:

• Two Joint Meritorious Unit Award for anti-drug operations
• Squadron Battle B (third consecutive)
• Coast Guard Special Operations Service Ribbon for anti-drug operations
• 10 Departmental E's (out of possible 10) of which 5 are gold (5 or more years consecutive)

"On Saturday, 5 May 1990, I relieved Marc and two days later deployed on an extremely successful Coast Guard Law Enforcement Operation to the Caribbean. There we captured a stowaway, rendered assistance to a sailing vessel in need of repairs, and conducted numerous hoarding; one resulting in the seizure of the M\V Romana, a large quantity of cocaine, and the arrest of it's 14 man crew. CONNOLB was awarded the Coast Guard Special operations Ribbon for this tasking. While we were underway and had a captive audience I set about implementing my leadership style. At first, my decision to give responsibility and authority to the Chiefs and leading Petty Officers and hold them accountable, was not well received. Anytime you try to change the status quo you get resistance. In this case, Master Chief Pelletier and Senior Chief Nunez let me know loud and clear that I was messing with a system that worked and they were skeptical that my methods would prove successful. A strong hand, and an eye for an eye, is the discipline the Navy was founded upon. In the end though, my two adversaries became my most loyal supporters and true friends, and CONNOLB won her third consecutive Battle "B" and all ten departmental B's with the highest scores on record. Now back to my tour. Upon completion of Law Enforcement Operations, CONNOLE returned to port and immediately began preparing for Refresher Training. On 22 June, the ship successfully completed an intensive Training Readiness Evaluation (TRE) from Fleet Training Group Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The instructors conducting the examination noted minimal discrepancies and no underway restrictions. After this grueling inspection, CONNOLE highlighted her schedule with a port visit to Quebec City, Canada. There, the ship and her crew acted as ambassadors of the United States, completing a noteworthy visit during highly charged political time. If you recall, Quebec was seceding from Canada. The crew was commended by AMCOSUL Quebec and U.S. DAO Ottawa for "a tremendously successful display of public diplomacy and for hosting" a memorable event in Quebec's 1990 political season. More important, many of our wives, including mine, and Master Chief Pelletier's got to join us for the festivities.

On 06 August, CONNOLE arrived at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and for the next four weeks she and her crew were tested to the extreme. The ship departed GITMO, on time, leaving the instructors overwhelmed. Never before have they seen such experience, knowledge, and dedication, in a crew so smooth in critical situations. Several officers distinguished themselves during these arduous times. LT Marc Weeks and LT Scott Corsano proved to be outstanding shiphandlers and CDR John Farley directed a most difficult residual steam light off of the engineering plant. This means we lost fires in the boiler and because of an electrical fire in the after switchboard, were unable to start the diesel for electricity. As the ships pumps run on electricity and are required to re-lite fires, we were in a predicament. John directed the engineers in spectacular fashion. First he had to align the plant for lite off, then bleed residual steam from the boiler to start our steam powered electrical generators. Timing is critical because you have to get pumps running before the boiler is out of steam or water. As you only get one chance, everything had to be perfect. It worked flawlessly but only because of John's expertise and the dedication of CONNOLE's engineers. During the process BTC(SW) Charles passed out from heat exhaustion but returned to the fireroom to continue to help. You cannot buy that kind of loyalty.

On 06 October, CONNOLE was underway for a second Law Enforcement Operation with the Coast Guard. At the completion we checked into the range at Vieques, PR for Naval Gunfire Support Qualifications. On 25 October, we successfully completed all required exercises and received our NGFS qualification after two previous unsuccessful attempts. On 30 October, CONNOLE steamed to the AUTBC range off Andros Island to provide services for perspective Commanding Officers of U.S. Submarines. For the next several days, the ship sharpened her ASW skills, fully utilizing all weapons systems and sensors to detect and simulate destroying enemy submarines and torpedoes. LT Weeks, ASW Officer, was spectacular. Following this very successful exercise, CONNOLE returned to Newport on ()6 November.

USS CONNOLE started 1991 with two major inspections: 3M (Maintenance) and SMI (Supply). The ship grade for the 3M Inspection was 91.4% with a 100% accomplishment confidence factor in all areas. Six grades of outstanding and two of excellent in the eight categories of the Supply Material Inspection earning the Supply Department it's fourth consecutive Blue "B" Award. LT McAllister and SKC(SW) Rivera were principally responsible for the success. The month of January also brought with it an inspection of the ship's "Quality Assurance Program". The COMNAVSURFLANT Survey Team cited CONNOLE's as the "model" for the fleet. But, what else would you expect from CONNOLE's engineers.

April was highlighted by the satisfactory completion of the Propulsion Examining Board's (OPPE). An objective grade of "above average" (the highest awarded) was received. This achievement of a second consecutive above average OPPE placed CONNOLE in the ranks of the elite engineering departments in the surface Navy. However, OPPE, by no means, overshadowed the outstanding

Following the completion of an Intermediate Maintenance Availability at SIMA Newport, CONNOLE was invited to Philadelphia, PA to celebrate Armed Forces Day. She was open to the public for tours which involved static displays and demonstration lectures. One display focused on the SH-2F helicopter flown by HSL-94 out of Willow Grove, PA. On 27 May CONNOLE departed Newport for BALTOPS '91 - a cruise to the North Atlantic which included seven port visits and extensive NATO operations in the BALTIC Sea. The operations phase of BALTOPS '91 involved operations in the areas of Anti-Submarine Warfare (AS W), Anti-Air Warfare (AAW), Mine Warfare, and Anti- Surface Warfare (ASUW) . The Task Group was composed of forces from Denmark, the Netherlands, and Germany along with USS HARRY E. YARNELL and USS JOHN L. HALL. In the area of ASW, CONNOLE acting as AX (Anti-Submarine Warfare Commander), successfully coordinated multi-platform ASW support for the battle group, from screening to simulated weapons launch against German type 205 and 206 diesel submarines. In AAW, we conducted numerous anti-ship missile defense exercises utilizing various aircraft platforms from many NATO countries. The ASUW phase of BALTOPS' 91 involved harpoon engagements, 5"'''54 Pac Fires, and target of opportunity exercises in which CONNOLE distinguished itself as AX (Anti-Surface Warfare Commander).

Port visits included Punta Delgada, Azores; Kiel, Germany; Stockholm, Sweden; Oslo, Norway; and Zeebrugge, Belgium. For the majority of these visits CONNOLE hosted local civilian and military officials at the Prime Ministerial and CNO level for receptions and sit down affairs. In Sweden, CONNOLE was the first U.S. warship to visit Stockholm since a diplomatically disastrous visit in 1989. The performance of both the ship and crew significantly improved the image of the United States and U.S. Navy and was lauded as having a major impact ongoing diplomatic relations.

In July, CONNOLE's last official port visit during BALTOPS' 91 occurred at Amsterdam, Netherlands over the 4th of July. There we hosted a grand party for over 200 American and Duteh Officials. The return transit across the Adan tic consisted of ten days of exercises with USS YARNELL and USS HALL, capped by a stop for fuel in Bermuda.

August brought CONNOLE's fourth and final major inspection for 1991 - INSURV (511141, 3M and OPPE being the first three). The significant effort put forth by ship's force for this end of the month material inspection resulted in a grade of outstanding in all areas.

CONNOLE hosted a dependent's cruise on Saturday, 21 September. Over 500 dependents and friends of crewmembers including many CONNOLE's embarked for a days excursion 30 miles off the coast of Rhode Island. A picnic, skeet shooting, damage control exercises and extensive tours were the highlights of this cruise.

Law Enforcement Operations (LEOPS) began in late September and continued into early November. This was the first of two counter narcotics law enforcement operations in the Caribbean in 1991. CONNOLE's crowning achievement was the confiscation of seventy kilos of cocaine from the vessel "Herman Bodewes". What made it special was that we had no intelligence information on the shipment. CONNOLE was also as major participant in the covert sting operation "Blind Date", which resulted in the seizure of 270 kilos of cocaine. Success of this operation was the culmination of detailed planning, flawless execution, and close coordination with the U.S. Coast Guard, the Drug Enforcement Agency, and numerous other DOD assets. In another operation CONNOLE was a key player in the recovery of the stolen sailing vessel "Simbari". We are awarded the Joint Meritorious Unit Award for our actions. The only major port visit in October was Trinidad where crew members volunteered to renovate a Trinidad hospice.

November consisted of a stand down/maintenance period in preparation for December LEOPS. During this second LEOPS no drugs were confiscated but CONNOLE assisted two sailing vessels, "Zoom" and "Tambusa", which had sustained damage during a strong Caribbean storm (15 ft. seas, 30-40 knot winds). CONNOLE ended 1991 in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.

In February 1992 we were off again to the Caribbean for extended Law Enforcement Operations. This one lasted three and one half months and was the last major underway period for USS CONNOLE. During this time we seized the motor vessel "Santa Amaro" and discovered over three tons of marijuana. As with the M\V Romana, we seized the vessel, arrested the crew and eventually turned all over to the U.S. Coast Guard. Again, we were awarded the Joint Meritorious Unit Award. Returning to Newport in May we embarked representations of the Hellenic Navy to began the training and transfer process. As I pen these last lines, we are underway in the Narragansett Bay Operations area for the final time. CONNOLE has served magnificently for the past 23 years and if my reading of CDR Divriotis and his crew is correct, will be the show piece of the Hellenic Navy for many years.

The officers and crew of CONNOLE, through tire less training and meticulous maintenance of her equipment, earned a reputation as a "superstar" in all mission areas. Throughout the competitive cycle, CONNOLE not only maintained the high standards that won her two previous Battle 'E's", but significantly improved in every area. Examination results speak of themselves. In each area CONNOLE not only improved, but improved significantly. This improvement is evident by CONNOLE's second consecutive above average OPPE, six outstanding and two excellents during our SMI, and outstanding performance on two CSA's (Combat Systems Assessments). visitors, including COMNAVSURFLANT, Admiral Donnell; Commander Fleet Training Group Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Commodore Rogers; and Commander Senior Officer Ship Material Readiness Course; Captain Ernst; remarked how well the USS CONNOLE is maintained, organized, and led. Because of this recognition, we adopted the motto:

WE DON'T MEET THE STANDARDS - WE SET THEM!