Hurricane freed U.S. military's dozens of killer dolphins
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by Mark Townsend Houston,
The Observer
[London, UK]
Sept. 25, 2005
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It may be the oddest tale to emerge from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Armed dolphins, trained by the US military to shoot terrorists and pinpoint spies underwater, may be missing in the Gulf of Mexico.
Experts who have studied the US Navy's cetacean training exercises claim the 36 mammals could be
carrying 'toxic dart' guns. Divers and surfers risk attack, they claim, from a species considered to be among the planet's smartest. The US Navy admits it has been training dolphins for military purposes, but has refused to confirm that any are missing.
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“[The trained dolphins] can be very harmful to divers or swimmers. If someone were to get into the water near one of our high-value assets, it wouldn’t be a good place to be.”
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Dolphins have been trained in attack-and-kill missions since the Cold War. The US Atlantic bottlenose dolphins have apparently been taught to shoot terrorists attacking military vessels. Their coastal compound was breached during the storm, sweeping them out to sea. But those who have studied the controversial use of dolphins in the US defense program claim it is vital they are caught quickly.
Leo Sheridan, 72, a respected accident investigator who has worked for government and industry, said he had received intelligence from sources close to the US government's marine fisheries service confirming dolphins had escaped.
'My concern is that they have learnt to shoot at divers in wetsuits who have simulated terrorists in exercises. If divers or windsurfers are mistaken for a spy or suicide bomber and if equipped with special harnesses carrying toxic darts, they could fire,' he said. 'The darts are designed to put the target to sleep so they can be interrogated later, but what happens if the victim is not found for hours?'
Usually dolphins were controlled via signals transmitted through a neck harness. 'The question is, were these dolphins made secure before Katrina struck?' said Sheridan.
The mystery surfaced when a separate group of dolphins was washed from a commercial oceanarium on the Mississippi coast during Katrina. Eight were found with the Navy's help, but the dolphins were not returned until US Navy scientists had examined them.
Sheridan is convinced the scientists were keen to ensure the dolphins were not the Navy's, understood to be kept in training ponds in a sound in Louisiana, close to Lake Pontchartrain, whose waters devastated New Orleans.
The Navy launched the classified Cetacean Intelligence Mission in San Diego in 1989, where dolphins, fitted with harnesses and small electrodes planted under their skin, were taught to patrol and protect Trident submarines in harbor and stationary warships at sea.
Criticism from animal rights groups ensured the use of dolphins became more secretive. But the project gained impetus after the Yemen terror attack on the USS Cole in 2000. Dolphins have also been used to detect mines near an Iraqi port.
As originally published
Killer dolphins remain ready to defend Navy assets
by Journalist Second Class (SW/AW) Sarah Bibbs, Flagship News
Nov. 25, 2004
MANAMA, Bahrain -- Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 3, Detachment 86 conducted a demonstration Nov. 19 of its anti-swimmer dolphin system Nov. 18, as part of its ongoing forward presence mission in the Persian Gulf.
The MK-6 Marine Mammal System, from Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center San Diego, is currently on its longest combat deployment in history, providing valuable protection to Navy assets in the region.
Due to their hydrodynamic shape and a highly effective biological sonar system, the bottlenose dolphins are uniquely equipped to detect, locate and mark underwater threat swimmers, divers and swimmer delivery vehicles through a process called echolocation, in which the dolphins emit broad-band high frequency clicks and listen to the
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echoes of those clicks as they bounce off objects.
“They have natural abilities that no man-made machine can duplicate,” said HT2(DV) Jayson Boyse, lead mammal handler of Detachment 86. “They’re highly effective at detecting and marking divers in the water.”
The danger exists primarily for those whom the dolphins seek out, Boyse said. “They can be very harmful to divers or swimmers. If someone were to get into the water near one of our high-value assets, it wouldn’t be a good place to be.”
Even the MK-6 trainers are unable to swim with the dolphins, except under carefully controlled conditions.
“No matter how close the relationship, the handlers can’t ignore the dolphins’ wild instincts. They look like your average ‘Sea World’ dolphin, but they’re trained to a much higher level,” said Lt. Kary Olson, MK-6 MMS officer in charge.
Through constant training, the handlers develop trust and familiarity with the dolphins to achieve desired behaviors from the animal, which in turn secures successful operations.
Physical care for the dolphins is a high priority for EODMU-3, Detachment 86. Army veterinarian Maj. Brad Blankenship and biological technician Daniel Peterson are assigned to MK-6 MMS to take care of all the mammals’ needs.
“These dolphins probably get more focused attention than any sailor would,” said Peterson. “They have a full clinic and a dedicated team that gives them excellent, 24-hour attention.”
Though the dolphins are on their longest combat deployment, Blankenship said the duration of the operation has had no effect on the dolphins’ operability.
“They probably don’t know the difference between San Diego and here,” he said. “Their care is still the same, if not better, and their job is still the same.”
The healthy, highly trained mammals of MK-6 have the ability to patrol waters at any hour, day or night, anywhere in the 5th Fleet area of operations.
“They can be rapidly deployed anywhere in the world,” said Boyse.
How much longer the team will stay in the area remains undetermined. Coalition forces are constantly working to prevent terrorist attacks in the region, and MK-6 MMS provides key support.
“We hope, that by being out here, we won’t have another incident like we did in (Aden,) Yemen with the (guided-missile destroyer) USS Cole,” said Blankenship.
As originally published
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