Cdr. John D. Kolata, USN (ret.) was commanding officer of the USS Manitowoc (LST 1180), which conducted the shipborne amphibious assault in the invasion of Grenada on Oct. 25, 1983. In an exclusive for Veterans Life, Kolata writes about the Operation Urgent Fury — and its part in the downfall of the Soviet Union.

By CDR. JOHN D. KOLATA, USN (ret.)
Guest columnist

Fellow veterans, I’m CDR John D. Kolata, USN (ret). I’m honored to be able to write a guest column commemorating the approaching 31st anniversary of Operation Urgent Fury, the invasion of Grenada. As the commanding officer of the USS Manitowoc (LST-1180), I was in charge of the amphibious assault by a company of U.S. Marines embarked on Manitowoc. Here is a quote from the Surface Warfare magazine (March/April 1984). 

LST sailors had center stage as sunset fell on D-day and Manitowoc launched an ingenious AMTRAC assault. The ship’s CO, CDR John Kolata, pointed his ship’s stern at the beach center from a bare half mile offshore to guide the assault column to the narrow unmarked beach. “It was exciting doing what we had trained for and what the ship was built for — landing and supporting combat Marines,” he said. 

Guiding the assault by radar was Manitowoc’s OS1(SW) Max Moore, who admitted that, “When the last boat hit the beach just right, [I breathed] a sigh of relief.”

This operation was very serious. The challenge with very serious matters is to maintain your sense of perspective and to remember the priorities. At times, a kick in the butt is required to regain your sense of perspective. Here’s what I mean.

Our task force had planned to land the Marines on the east side of Grenada. But the sea state was not favorable for small craft operations. My commodore on the USS Guam (LPH-9) told me to take charge of another amphibious ship and proceed to the west side of Grenada and launch the Marines. As we started moving from the east to the west, I reviewed the navigational charts for the west side of the island. The charts were completely unsat for an amphibious assault.

My predecessor in command was now the chief of staff for my commodore and had operated a sailboat in a visit to Grenada in the past. I communicated with him and asked if he had good charts of Grenada. He said he did and would dispatch a helicopter to my ship with the chart. I was very relieved. As we were proceeding to the western side of Grenada, the helo landed on my deck and a messenger brought the chart tube to the bridge.

My executive officer and navigator were at my side when I opened the tube to examine the chart. You can imagine the surprise when I opened the “chart” to find out it was a tourist map with palm trees printed around the edge of the “chart.” That bit of humor told me to get the hell going with the business at hand — keep my perspective and comply with the priorities. It lifted a huge concern off of my shoulders.

And then there was a repeat. For background, the Marines are under the command of the Navy until they cross the surf line, when they shift to the Marine chain of command. So I was getting ready to order the commencement of launching the Marines when the Marine company commander burst on to the bridge (if he was a dragon, fire would have been bursting out of his mouth). In a surprisingly soft voice, he told me that he had lost communications with his Marine chain of command and requested his order from me. My entire bridge crew was observing this situation. In a soft voice, I asked the Marine captain if it was normal for the Marines to take the high ground. No, he said, we should protect our flanks. So in a very loud and commanding voice, I said, “Captain, go in there and protect your flank!” Yet another thing that relieved my tension.

The assault was highly successful and the Marines rescued the British governor general. The Manitowoc’s Marines suffered zero casualties.

I would say that the lesson we could learn from this story is to not sweat the small stuff, believe in the expertise of others, and get the job done — don’t expect to be told what to do every step along the way to mission accomplishment.

The entire amphibious task force that Manitowoc was part of during Operation Urgent Fury displayed true flexibility in carrying out the orders of our commander in chief, President Ronald Reagan. In my opinion, it was necessary to stop the expansion of communist Cuba and its ally, the USSR, into other parts of our hemisphere and in no small manner was a first step in the dissolution of the USSR and the end of the Cold War.

— CDR John D. Kolata, USN (ret.) served as commanding officer of USS Manitowoc (LST 1180) from 1982-85. He earned an undergraduate degree in chemistry from the University of Notre Dame, studied public administration at George Mason University, and earned an MBA from Bryant College. After retiring from the Navy, he served as a city administrator for various municipalities in Ohio and Illinois. He is certified as a Credentialed Manager by the International City/County Management Association. 

OPERATION URGENT FURY
Dates: Oct. 25 to  Dec. 15, 1983.

Cause: Military coup; Cuban and North Korean military presence.

What Urgent Fury accomplished: Military dictatorship deposed, Cuban military presence defeated, constitutional government restored.

Casualties:
— United States: 19 killed, 116 wounded.
— Grenada: 45 killed, 358 wounded.
— Cuba: 25 killed, 59 wounded, 638 captured.
— Civilians: 24 killed.

Source: Wikipedia