FIRE MISSION BEIRUT: Calling in the Big Guns of the U.S.S. New Jersey for the Last Time

There was a time, not long ago, when a certain class of warships sitting off the coast of a nation ruled by a despot, or overrun by communist revolutionaries, instantly instilled fear and panic. These ships dominated naval warfare for most of the 19^th and early 20^th century. The mere sight of these massive weapons of war could quickly cool even the most brutal of dictators and quell Marxist uprisings without firing a shot. These were the battleships known as dreadnoughts. Of these warships, one in particular stands out: the Iowa-Class, U.S.S. New Jersey (BB-62) – also known as Big J.

In 1982, the U.S.S. New Jersey displaced over 60,000 tons, had a length of over two-and-a-half football fields, was armed with nine 16-inch Mark 7 guns, twelve 5-inch Mark 12 guns, thirty-two Tomahawk cruise missiles, four 20mm Phalanx CIWIS and an assortment of other weapons of which to bring to bear against her foes.  Even with this impressive armament, these ships had become “obsolete” once aircraft carriers dominated surface warfare during WWII.

Through the Vietnam War and beyond, battleships had been tasked as fire support ships where their primary mission was to provide naval gunfire support to Marines and soldiers on the beaches and beyond. In the waning days of its operational existence, the U.S.S. New Jersey was called upon to support operations along the littorals of the Mediterranean Sea near a town beset by war and violence – Beirut.

In 1982, a Multinational Force of peacekeepers consisting of U.S., Italian and French soldiers, and later the British, was assembled to try and bring peace and stability to war ravaged Lebanon. The country was being torn apart by a brutal sectarian war. A myriad of Lebanese factions fought one another even as Syrian and Israeli forces clashed. U.S. Marines landed and secured positions near the Beirut International Airport.

For the next year and a half, various Marine Corps battalions from the 2^nd Marine Division rotated in and out as the civil war grew. Eventually, the peacekeeping force was shelled and attacked by Syrian backed militias, drawing them into the fighting. On the morning of October 23, 1983, at 0622, a yellow Mercedes-Benz van drove through a Marine checkpoint and detonated in the building housing the Headquarters & Supply (H&S) Company of 1^st Battalion 8^th Marines, killing 241 Americans, 58 French soldiers and six civilians.

It was the single deadliest day for the Marine Corps since the battle for Iwo Jima. These events would bring together a small team of specially trained US Marines and the U.S.S. New Jersey into one of the last coordinated naval gunfire shelling’s of this historic naval ship that saw action during WWII, the Korean War and Vietnam War.

In the fall of 1983, teams from 2^nd Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company (ANGLICO) were preparing to rotate in and out of Beirut. Their mission was to support the multinational peacekeeping force by attaching small teams, trained to spot and direct airstrikes, artillery or naval gunfire, to the British, Italians and Lebanese Army members of the Multinational Force. One of those men that would be leading these teams was Captain Kevin Baesler.

This young Marine Officer grew up in Florida with a father that had fought as a U.S. Marine in WWII. Serving his country was a duty Kevin embraced. As a young boy, the first song Kevin learned to sing was The Marine’s Hymn. He was just wired to be a Marine. After receiving his commission in 1979, Kevin Baesler served a few years in an artillery battalion before being selected to join 2^nd ANGLICO on Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. After attending various courses such as US Army Airborne School, Pathfinder School, and the Marine Corps Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) course, Captain Baesler was assigned as a Firepower Control Team (FCT) leader.  

When the attack on the Marine barracks occurred, Baesler and his Marines were part of an ANGLICO detachment deployed to Rota, Spain to train with the Spanish Marine Infantry. The detachment eventually arrived in Lebanon in mid-December to relieve another ANGLICO detachment which arrived the previous September. Fighting in Lebanon grew more intense in early days of December 1983. On December 3^rd, Syrian forces east of Beirut fired upon US Navy aircraft conducting a reconnaissance flight.

In retaliation, US aircraft from the U.S.S. John F Kennedy and U.S.S. Independence conducted an airstrike the following day against Syrian forces in the Metn area east of Beirut. Syrian backed forces were able to shoot down an A6 Intruder and A7 Corsair with surface to air missiles (SAM). At Beirut International Airport, Marine positions came under sustained shelling by Syrian-backed Druse militia, killing several Marines. The situation continued to worsen.

After rotating assignments with the British and Italian contingents of the Multi-National Peacekeeping force, one of the ANGLICO teams, led by 1^st Lieutenant Bruce Kowalski, was redeployed to the mountain village of Beit Miri. Located northeast of Beirut, the small village was a strategic location, allowing observation of the Beirut-Damascus highway east of Beirut, as well as hostile militia positions around the town of Bhamdoun. 

Simultaneously, in early February 1984, intense fighting broke out in west Beirut between the Lebanese Army and anti-government militias, primarily belonging to the Shiite Amal movement; several Lebanese Army units defected in masse to the anti-government opposition. As a result of the deteriorating situation, the Italian and British forces withdrew from Lebanon, followed by the majority of the 22^nd MAU, which redeployed to U.S. Navy shipping offshore towards the end of February 1984.   At the same time, Captain Baesler’s team was relocated to the Lebanese mountains east of Beit Miri, near the Maronite monastery of Deir Mar Musa. 

The ANGLICO Marines were ordered to maintain observation over Syrian-held territory and, if necessary, direct supporting arms against hostile forces.  Informally, they were also called upon to verify Lebanese Army reports of being attacked. There was concern that the Lebanese would try and draw U.S. forces into an already deteriorating situation under false pretenses thus escalating the situation.

Following a briefing by US Army 5^th Special Forces Group personnel, the five-man team was driven into the mountains in an armored SUV and dropped off near an old bunker that was originally built in 1975 when the civil war started. The living conditions were austere and rough, but nothing new to the men as the Corps trains Marines to be comfortable being uncomfortable. Initially, the men were busy finding Syrian anti-aircraft gun positions and reporting their location to the Marine Amphibious Unit (MAU), conducting surveillance, terrain analysis, reporting intelligence information to American military leadership. These five men were isolated and on their own but more than capable of providing their own security. Their only lifeline was their communications equipment. The rules of engagement (ROE) provided guidance that the Marines were cleared to fire or engage, only if fired upon.

On the morning of February 25th, Baesler’s team conducted surveillance of Syrian positions across the valley, near the town of Hammana. They marveled at the results of an earlier naval gunfire bombardment, compliments of the U.S.S. New Jersey. The side of one of the larger mountains east of Hammana was cratered and black against a background of snow and rock outcroppings. The young Americans couldn’t help but smile at the utter destruction caused by the massive 16-inch main guns of Big J.

The ship had fired over 280 rounds from her 16-inch guns about a dozen miles inland, silencing artillery batteries that were shelling Beirut. The bombardment, the largest fired by the New Jersey since the Korean War, also killed a Syrian General. While admiring the US Navy’s handy work, two F-14s, flying in close formation screamed over the team’s position at what seemed like 1,000 to 2,000 feet. Instinctively, everyone jumped as the jets screamed by over their heads.  Equipped with the Tactical Airborne Reconnaissance Pod system (TARP), the F-14 Tomcats were on a reconnaissance flight. 

The whole valley erupted. Syrian and hostile militia Anti-Aircraft Artillery (AAA) from almost every position the team had been tracking opened up on the jets.  ZSU-23-4, 57mm guns, machineguns and even AK-47s all joined in an attempt to destroy the two Tomcats, now “yanking and banking” across the valley. Immediately, the Marines tried to contact the MAU to report the incident but were unable to reach them due to the distance and intervening hills.

The ANGLICO team in Beit Miri monitored the exchange and was able to relay the report. However, when the report went to the MAU, something was lost in translation, as the MAU believed the Syrians were firing AAA and surface to air missiles (SAMs). The inclusion of SAMs caused instant concern. Everyone wanted clarification on the surface to air missiles. The Marines had to correct the message stating “We saw no SAMs, just triple-A.”

The attempted downing of the F-14s must have upset someone with enough rank. The ANGLICO team was contacted and informed that the U.S. Navy was going to send another pair of F-14s though the valley the next morning, February 26^th. The mission was simple but had strategic importance. Identify a target, and if that target engages the F-14s, destroy it by spotting and directing naval gunfire on to it.

That afternoon, the Marines identified a ZU-23 AAA position located on a hilltop about 5-clicks to the southeast, the closest target not in a built-up area. Leveraging their AN/PAQ-3 Modular Universal Laser Equipment (MULE), they plotted the position on their maps, came up with precise grid coordinates and prepared their Call for Fire.

Sure enough, the next morning, two F-14 Tomcats shrieked overhead. As expected, the Syrians took the bait. The valley erupted in AAA as the F-14s flashed through the valley. Lance Corporal Rick Ullery, one of the Marines on Captain Baesler’s team, immediately sent the naval gunfire request over the Spot Net. Due to the extreme range, the only naval gunfire option they had was the U.S.S. New Jersey’s 16-inch guns.  

The AAA battery was near the crest of a large hill, making it difficult to hit. After directing a couple spotting rounds sent by the battleship, Captain Baesler called “Fire for Effect”, meaning the ship will fire a salvo. The U.S.S. New Jersey fired thirteen rounds of their huge, 16-inch guns, coming to within 150 meters of the target but just over or under the crest, limiting the destructive effects. Naval gunfire is an area fired weapon; it doesn’t have to directly hit the target to be effective. The rounds silenced the AAA position.  5,000 meters away, the men could feel the explosions and shockwaves. They never had trouble with the Syrian position again. The small detachment of Marines from 2^nd ANGLICO would be withdrawn like the rest of the MAU and head back to North Carolina before spring 1984.

The U.S.S. New Jersey was a behemoth of power and prestige for the United States. However, it was becoming obsolete and expensive to operate. At the sunset of its active-duty life, the U.S.S. New Jersey teamed up with this small team of US Marines for the first observer-controlled salvo since the Vietnam War and the last one of her historic life in which she saw action. In February 1991, the U.S.S. New Jersey was decommissioned for the last time. She is now a floating museum in Camden, New Jersey.

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Jason Angell is a former Marine Corps Captain with over ten years of active service, both as an enlisted marine and commissioned officer. Jason participated in three combat deployments to Iraq to include the initial 2003 invasion. During these deployments, he fought in the Rumaila Oil fields, Baghdad, Ramadi and Al Hit. He has a bachelor’s degree from California State University, Fullerton and a master’s degree from the University of Houston-Downtown. Jason is the author of the book Running Towards Gunfire: Courage and Brotherhood in Ramadi.

As the Voice of the Veteran Community, The Havok Journal seeks to publish a variety of perspectives on a number of sensitive subjects. Unless specifically noted otherwise, nothing we publish is an official point of view of The Havok Journal or any part of the U.S. government.