The WATC 08 exercise is being held through April 5 in concert with the ongoing African Partnership Station deployment with a focus on the delivery of humanitarian assistance supplies to various clinics and schools in Monrovia from a sea-based command.

Marines from 4th Landing Support Battalion, 4th Marine Logistics Group, completed the first phase by transferring vehicles and equipment from the maritime prepostioning ships, USNS 2nd Lt John Bobo and USNS LCpl Roy M. Wheat, to USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43).

With the help of the Navy’s Naval Beach Group Two, 19 Marines of 4th LSB employed new concepts and equipment during the exercise desi-gned to evaluate the progress of the seabasing model.

‘‘This seabasing portion is designed to take future operational concepts and execute them using today’s platforms,” said Michael Harvey, prepositioning officer, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe. ‘‘We are taking equipment that was originally designed for ship-to-shore movement and we are using it as a ship-to-ship connecter.”

Assisted by their naval count-erparts, the Marines’ mission was to transfer seven Marine Corps vehicles embarked on the USNS 2nd Lt John Bobo of the Maritime Preposition Squadron One, to the Navy’s new Improved Navy Lighterage System. The INLS is a system of floating causeways designed to move equip-ment from ship-to-shore. After a short ride on the INLS, the Marines drove the vehicles from the INLS platforms directly into the well deck of the USS Fort McHenry, where they are being prepared for the next phases of WATC 08.

‘‘We are dealing with multiple naval platforms during this exercise, tying in with African Partnership Station,” said Lt. Col. Clarence R. Edmonds, Eurasia regional planner, Marine Forces Europe. ‘‘[The INLS] gives us the stable platform we need to offload vehicles and equipment from one ship to another at sea.”

The exercise marked the first time that the INLS had been assembled and used in an open sea environment, Edmonds said. The capabilities provided by the INLS make it possible for the Marine Corps to operate in more flexible ways.

‘‘The seabasing environment gives us the opportunity to offload select equipment, materials and supplies to conduct arrival and assembly oper-ations at sea,” Edmonds said. ‘‘This gives us multiple capabilities to execute a mission ashore, within a very limited time frame and with a very limited footprint (ashore).”

The successful demonstration of the offload and transfer of equipment to USS Fort McHenry marks only the first stage of the total WATC 08 mission. When vehicle preparations are complete, the Marines and Sailors will load them back on the INLS for transfer to the High Speed Vessel Swift, which will then take the Marines and vehicles into the Port of Monrovia in order to conduct the humanitarian assistance mission.

‘‘This is the first time almost all of these Marines have been aboard a ship,” said Staff Sgt. Gregory Matzen, inspector⁄instructor staff, 4th LSB. ‘‘The experience they gain during this exercise will help increase their capabilities and make them more well-rounded Marines.”