Helicopter Mine Countermeasures Squadron (HM) 15 Detachment IIA (DET IIA), based in Bahrain, embarked on the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) on August 2nd. At least two MH-53Es of HM-15 stopped in the United Arab Emirates before moving on to the Roosevelt‘s position in the Gulf of Oman, roughly 70 kilometers east of the UAE. One of many moves made by the U.S. Navy as the United States prepares for the possibility of an attack on U.S. and allied forces in the region.
HM-15 is the U.S. Navy’s only MH-53E squadron following the deactivation of its sister unit, HM-14, in 2023. It retains permanent detachments worldwide, providing Navy forces with additional aircraft for VIP transport, Vertical Onboard Delivery (VOD), and Airborne Mine Countermeasures Missions (AMCM).
MH-53Es are commonly deployed on amphibious assault ships and amphibious landing docks, with very limited instances of deployments onto aircraft carriers. The last publicly known instance of an MH-53E embarking on a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier was in 2018 when an HM-15 MH-53E embarked on the USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) during routine carrier readiness exercises.
Breakdown of the MH-53E Sea Dragon
The MH-53E Sea Dragon’s primary mission is the Airborne Mine Countermeasure Mission (AMCM) with a secondary role for Vertical Onboard Delivery (VOD) and VIP transport. Its main feature is the Mk 105 minesweeping sled which is towed in the water behind the helicopter to trigger mines.
The MH-53E also features the A/N37U-1 Mine Clearing Set used to sever mine moorings, the Mk104 Acoustic Mine Sweep used to trigger mines by mimicking ship acoustic signatures, the AN/AQS-14(V)1 Sonar Detecting Set high-resolution towed sonar used to locate and identify mines, and the AN/AES-1 Airborne Laser Mine Detection System (ALMDS) which uses lasers to map undersea objects.
Compared to the MH-60S Knighthawk, a helicopter common in Carrier Air Wings, the MH-53E Sea Dragon has a more diverse set of capabilities with the ability to destroy or disable more mines per sortie. The deployment brings much needed additional capabilities to the Roosevelt CSG if a mine threat arises, most notably from Houthi forces in Yemen and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Additional U.S. Navy Assets Deployed to the Middle East
The deployment of minesweeping helicopters was followed by the forward deployment of VFA-25, an F/A-18E squadron previously embarked on the USS Theodore Roosevelt, to Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, Jordan, a move aimed to bolster U.S. forces tasked to defend against a possible attack by Iran targeting regional allies. Both deployments of MH-53E Sea Dragons and F/A-18E Super Hornets are a posturing move to better protect U.S. allies and forces in the region.
In a phone call with Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin also ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) to accelerate its transit to the 5th Fleet Area of Operations. The USS Abraham Lincoln has Air Wing Nine embarked, an Air Wing Of The Future (AWOTF) that fields advanced weapons and technology including the F-35C Lightning II and AN/ALQ-249 Next Generation Jammer which Naval News reported on here.
The Lincoln departed Naval Base Guam on August 8th after a four day scheduled port call, joined by three escorts from Destroyer Squadron 21 (DESRON 21); USS O’Kane (DDG 77), USS Spruance (DDG 111) and USS Frank E. Peterson Jr. (DDG 121). USS Spruance (DDG 111) departed Saipan to join CSG-3 simultaneously. The Lincoln Carrier Strike Group is set to relieve the Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group in roughly two weeks.
A Ticonderoga-class cruiser, USS Lake Erie (CG 70) also deployed with the Theodore Roosevelt CSG but did not accompany the carrier into the 5th Fleet AO. It most recently trained with Filipino, Canadian, and Australian Navy forces in a quadrilateral Maritime Cooperation Activity. USS Lake Erie may join the Lincoln CSG as the strike group transits through the West Pacific.
“Secretary Austin has ordered the USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN Carrier Strike Group, equipped with F-35C fighters, to accelerate its transit to the Central Command area of responsibility, adding to the capabilities already provided by the USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT Carrier Strike Group. Additionally, the Secretary has ordered the USS Georgia (SSGN 729) guided missile submarine to the Central Command region.”
Readout of the phone call between U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant, provided by Pentagon Press Secretary Major General Pat Ryder.
A second aircraft carrier, USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), is in the final days of a COMPUTEX which precedes deployment. It is set to deploy to the 5th Fleet AO with the USS Abraham Lincoln.
The U.S. Navy’s preparation for a conflict will continue in the following days as additional assets rotate into the region. The United States does not view conflict as inevitable, but does view the current crisis as a possible catalyst for regional war. Additional diplomatic efforts are well underway between Iran and the United States to mediate the ongoing crisis, but the U.S. Navy is preparing for any eventuality.
