Sailors and Military Sealift Command civilian mariners attached to submarine tender USS Frank Cable (AS 40) attended a gun shoot on Diego Garcia, July 13-14.

The Frank Cable team, consisting of more than 500 Sailors and civilian mariners, is currently on deployment to provide vital flexibility to the fleet commanders, extending the range and impact of U.S. naval forces.

Sailors and MSC personnel shot the M9 service pistol, M4A1 carbine and M500 shotgun to increase overall shipboard readiness.

"It is important these personnel complete semiannual sustainment training, as well as annual qualifications," said Chief Gunner's Mate Christopher Cruz, range safety officer. "We do this to maintain their small arms marksmanship proficiency and Frank Cable's high level of force protection readiness."

Sailors are responsible for not only their assigned ratings or daily jobs, but also to enforce and support the safety and preservation of the ship and crew.

"I'm glad our Weapons Department got this range set up for the crew so that our Sailors can maintain their qualifications to carry a weapon while deployed," said Cmdr. Ed Callahan, executive officer of Frank Cable. "Keeping proficient on a weapon is an immediate asset to the ship. While we are a warship that fixes warships, you never know when you might need to use this training to protect the crew and the ship."

Frank Cable is one of two forward-deployed submarine tenders and is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to conduct maintenance and support deployed U.S. naval force submarines and surface vessels in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.

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