Stationary equatorial Kelvin wave solutions are forced below the thermocline by a vertical velocity representing large-scale convergence or divergence patterns associated with the upper ocean circulation, in the presence of a mean westward flow U mimicking the Equatorial Intermediate Current. For constant U, solutions exhibit a dominant vertical scale as given by McCreary and Lukas (1986), but in the presence of vertical mean shear, considerable changes in amplitude and vertical scale of the waves with depth occur. The combined effects of shear and linear friction on both the oscillatory and decay vertical scales of the wave flows are examined for typical shear profiles. In general, the faster the mean flow is at the top, the deeper energy is able to propagate before being dissipated. Shallow critical layers (where U=0) may provide a barrier to the penetration of wave energy to great depths. The relevance of these ideas to the dynamics of the equatorial deep jets is discussed. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1988