1987-1991 / Norwegian Navy & Military

This section covers my years in the Norwegian Navy and Military.

Six of the first seven recognised Norwegian North Sea Pioneer Divers completed frogman diver training, graduating from the Norwegian Navy’s S.F. unit at DFS.

The frogman courses held in 1962, 1963 and 1964 began with seventy and ninety men. Each of the three classes ended with sixteen graduates. Of the thirty-six men who began the course in 1965/2, five graduated. (The split from Frogmen into Marinejeger and Minedykker divisions occurred in 1968). During my time at DFS, I learned that, if one follows the size of the Norwegian military year by year, the attrition rate has remained approximately the same throughout the decades.

Chronologically listed: The first seven Norwegian Navy divers taking part in North Sea Offshore diving crews were: Idar Johnsen – Odd Gåskjenn – Leif-Tore Skjerven – Johannes Straumøy – Gunnar Møllegaard – Arne Richard Jentoft and Per Skipnes.

Idar Johnsen (Ships diver, Standard Diver DFS 1964) came from Odda and first went to sea at the age of fifteen.

Odd Gåskjenn (Ships diver, Standard diver, Frogman DFS 1963) came from Tvedestrand. Odd continued to attend university in Oslo after leaving the navy before diving offshore.

Leif-Tore Skjerven (Frogman DFS 1964-1) came from Sandefjord. Idar, Odd, and Leif-Tore had worked together following their naval years as construction divers for Jon Berg’s; Nord-Norges Dykker og Froskemanns Service AS, based in Tromsø.

Johannes Straumøy (Frogman DFS 1965-2) came from Herdla, Askøy, near Bergen.

Gunnar Møllegaard (Frogman DFS 1963), the eldest of eight siblings, came from Sørum.

Arne Richard Jentoft (Frogman DFS 1964-1) came from Bergen.

Per Skipnes (Frogman DFS 1963) came from Stathelle, Bamble. Born in 1937, he became a seaman early on. Disappearing for some years, joining the Spanish Foreign Legion and the Moroccan Army, returned to Norway to attend the Frogman training (DFS 1963) with Odd and Gunnar. Tragically, Per passed away on 17 January 1974 at the young age of thirty-seven during tragic circumstances while diving in the North Sea.

Minedykkerkommandoen: (The Mine Diver Command) is Norway’s clearance diver unit. It is a branch of the Norwegian naval defences specializing in explosive ordnance disposal. MDK is subordinate to Minekrigsflotiljen (Mine Warfare Flotilla), a Norwegian Navy division. MDK has in recent years evolved/reconfigured into a more mobile sea/land-based force. MDK has a base at the Haakonsvern naval station in Bergen and is divided into four small units, one of which has a stronghold at Ramsund naval station outside Harstad.

The Mine Diver Command is part of the Norwegian Navy contribution to the Norwegian Defence Forces Intervention Force. The command’s personnel have taken part in operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, Baltic States, Mediterranean, Somalia, Horn of Africa (the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea), Macedonia, Syria and Norway (World War II mine disposal), among others. The unit is often on assignment for the Norwegian Police Service with bomb disposal. They use several Canadian-made rebreathers: Viper SE, Viper Plus, S-24. They also previously used Siva 55 and Siva Plus.

History:
In 1953 the Norwegian Navy formed a frogman unit. This unit was under the command of Ove Lund and is the origin of the modern Minedykkerkommandoen and Marinejegerkommandoen. The mission of the frogmen was to conduct reconnaissance and sabotage against enemy targets above and below water. The frogmen were also tasked with disarming all water-born explosive devices. The missions gradually became more comprehensive, and different frogman specialities emerged. Structure changes were incorporated in 1968, requiring dividing the frogman service into defensive & offensive sections, entirely in line with underwater services of other nations. The unit was divided into Marine Jeger (Marine Jeger laget / MJK) & Marine Dykker (Mine Dykker Troppen / MDK). Numbers required were to be 1/3 Marinejeger (one annual course & one base) & 2/3 Minedykker (two annual courses & two bases). Today there is one annual course for each branch. The Norwegian descriptions were subsequently named: Minedykker / Mine Diver (initially Minedykkertroppen / Mine Diver troop – now Minedykkerkommandoen / Mine Diver Commando). Marinejeger / Marine Hunter (initially Marinejegerlaget / Marine Hunter Team – now Marinejegerkommandoen / Marine Hunter Commando).

Selection and training:
General selection separates out those who do not have the physical and mental abilities to start the clearance diver course. A candidate must contest a strength test, a fitness test, and a water stress test. There are three sections MDUP 1, 2 & 3.

After passing the general selection, an applicant attends the main selection, performed in the winter. It comprises physical and mental exercises with little food and little sleep. Few of those who enter get through.

Following selection, the potential operator starts basic training for 12 months at the Norwegian Navy diver and frogman school, Dykker og Froskemannskolen. This training involves all basic disciplines required to serve as a clearance diver. After training, candidates eligible for operational service are transferred to MDK to become an EOD operator. Further training is conducted domestically or abroad at allied training facilities. Only one course a year is held starting in August.