Global War On Terrorism
In support of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), today's MA force is being forward deployed to many places around the world including Cuba, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Djibouti, among other locations. MAs may be assigned to a Maritime Expeditionary Security Force (MESF), to Riverine Squadrons (RIVRON), Maritime Civil Affairs Groups (MCAG), or a special forces unit where they will conduct ATFP and expeditionary missions. These missions typically include protective services, VBSS Teams, and Embarked Security Teams (EST) aboard ships with minimal self-defense capability responsible for fortifying landside locations and securing foreign ports for use by U.S. warships. Most MAs who perform these type of ATFP related duties now report through the newly formed Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC) from their chain of command.
Since the beginning of the global war on terror efforts, the increased need for specialized units such as MESF and RIVRON units and the manning of several forward deployed locations such as Bahrain saw the need to increase the number of MAs. The current active duty number of MAs (approximately 9,000) is a direct reflection of that requirement. This was a significant increase from the previous manning level in the year 2000 which consisted of approximately 3,500 personnel.
Read more about this topic: Master At Arms, United States Navy
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