Special operations operates off Coquina

U.S. Coast Guard Station Cortez and Manatee County Sheriff’s Office patrol boats are staged March 19 for a U.S. Special Operations Command equipment test at south Coquina Beach on Longboat Pass. SOCOM is a military command that oversees special operations components of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. SOCOM public affairs officer Kassie Collins stated in a March 19 email to The Islander that the test was part of maritime capability trials in the Tampa Bay area to better equip forces. Islander Photo: Courtesy Capt. Scott Moore

A balloon flies at south Coquina Beach March 19 as part of an equipment test out of MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa. The balloon was used in conjunction with a remote-control personal watercraft as part of an equipment evaluation by U.S. Special Operations Command. Islander Photo: Courtesy BBPD Officer Eric Hill