Inside the 'ship in a box' that Coast Guard crews use to ready for boat battles on the high seas

"Inside the Coast Guard's "ship in a box," elite Tactical Law Enforcement Teams rehearse the split-second decisions that make or break a real drug interdiction. The Coast Guard is seizing record drug hauls at sea. To keep pace, its elite boarding teams train inside a mock ship where the hallways, hatches, and hidden threats are designed to prepare them for the moments when a boarding takes a turn."

"From the outside, the "ship in a box" concept looks like a stack of cargo containers, but it's meant to mimic a large vessel. The inside is customizable, with movable walls and doors to change the layout. It's here that the Coast Guard's elite TACLET, the specialists who engage in high-pressure boardings of boats suspected of carrying illegal drugs like cocaine and marijuana to the US, prepare for all the ways an interdiction might go down."

"Business Insider recently got a look at a demonstration of a team training in the 'ship in a box,' watching how specialists boarded the vessel, swiftly moved through it to take control, apprehended 'traffickers,' and in two instances, neutralized hostile crew members. It's this kind of training that keeps teams sharp, specialists said. The "ship in a box" sits on TACLET South's Opa-locka base, with multiple levels and entry points."

The Coast Guard trains elite Tactical Law Enforcement Teams inside a customizable mock ship that simulates large vessels for drug interdiction and close-quarters combat. The interior features movable walls, doors, multiple levels, and varied entry points to create different mission layouts and hidden threats. Teams rehearse boarding from small boats, climbing ladders, securing propulsion systems, locating drugs, and apprehending suspected traffickers. Training scenarios range from quiet arrests to forceful neutralizations of hostile crew members. Regular, realistic drills prepare specialists for split-second decisions during high-pressure boardings and help the service respond to record drug seizures at sea.

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