Engineering:Strategic sealift ships

Short description: United States military ship category

PFC William B. Baugh docked at Port Canaveral, Florida, in 2008

USNS PFC Dewayne T. Williams, USNS Dahl, and USNS Maj. Stephen W. Pless anchored off the coast of Saipan in June 2011

Strategic sealift ships or Maritime prepositioning ships are part of the United States Military Sealift Command's (MSC) prepositioning program. There are currently 17 ships in the program, strategically positioned around the world to support the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Defense Logistics Agency. Most are named after Medal of Honor recipients from the service they support. The ships are assigned to two Maritime Prepositioning Ship (MPS) squadrons located in the Indian Ocean at Diego Garcia and in the Western Pacific Ocean at Guam and Saipan.

The MPS ships in each squadron have sufficient equipment, supplies and ammunition to support a Marine Air-Ground Task Force for 30 days. The MPS ships are self-sustaining, with cranes to unload at sea or pierside. MSC chartered the first two ship classes in the MPS role (the Corporal Louis J. Hauge Jr. and Sergeant Matej Kocak classes) from civilian shipping lines and converted them. Later ships were purpose-built.

Afloat prepositioning by US military began in the early 1980s to improve the response time for the delivery of equipment and supplies to a potential theater of operation.

Ships

Sergeant Matej Kocak class

The Sergeant Matej Kocak class, the second class of MPS ships chartered by MSC, also gained 157 feet (48 m) amidships and a helicopter deck after conversion. These ships, delivered to MSC in the mid-1980s, built at Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Chester, Pennsylvania, and converted at National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, San Diego. They were previously owned by Waterman Steamship Corporation but recently sold to MSC and now operated by Keystone Shipping Company. They were all part of the Waterman Line C7-S-133a Series.

• Builder: Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Chester, PA; General Dynamics Quincy Shipbuilding Division, Quincy, Massachusetts
• Converted: National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, San Diego, California
• Power Plant: 2 boilers; 2 GE turbines; 30,000 hp (22,371 kW); 1 shaft
• Length: 821.0 ft (250.2 m)
• Beam: 105.6 ft (32.2 m)
• Displacement: 48,754 tons (49,536 metric tons) full load
• Crew: 34 civilians, 10 technicians
• Cargo capacity: Containers, 532; ro-ro, 152,236 sq ft (14,143 m²); JP-5 barrels, 20,290; DF-2 barrels, 12,355; Mogas barrels, 3,717; stable water, 2,189; cranes, two twin 50-ton and one 30-ton gantry
• Helicopters: platform only
• Speed: 20 knots (37 km/h)

Ships

• • (formerly SS Sgt. Matej Kocak, SS John B. Waterman)
  • (formerly SS PFC Eugene A. Obregon, SS Thomas Heywood)
  • (formerly SS Maj. Stephen W. Pless, SS Charles Carroll)

2nd Lieutenant John P. Bobo class

The 2nd Lieutenant John P. Bobo-class ships are new construction ships delivered to MSC in the mid-1980s from General Dynamics Quincy Shipbuilding Division, Quincy, Massachusetts They were owned by American Overseas Marine (AMSEA) but have been recently sold to MSC and are now operated by Crowley Technical Management.

• Builders: General Dynamics Quincy Shipbuilding Division, Quincy, Massachusetts
• Power Plant: 2 Stork-Werkspoor 16TM410 diesels; 27,000 hp (20,134 kW) sustained; 1 Omnithruster JT1000 bow thruster, 1,000 hp (746 kW)
• Length: 675.2 ft (205.8 m)
• Beam: 105.5 ft (32.2 m)
• Displacement: 44,330 tons (45,041 metric tons) full load
• Cargo capacity: Containers, 530; ro-ro, 152,185 sq ft (14,138 m²); JP-5 barrels, 20,776; DF-2 barrels, 13,334; Mogas barrels, 4,880; stable water, 2,357; cranes, one single and two twin 39-ton
• Helicopters: platform only
• Speed: 17.7 knots (33 km/h)
• Crew: 38 civilians, 10 technicians
  • (formerly MV 2nd Lt. John P. Bobo)
  • (formerly MV PFC Dewayne T. Williams)
  • (formerly MV 1st Lt. Baldomero Lopez)
  • (formerly MV 1st Lt. Jack Lummus)
  • (formerly MV Sgt. William R. Button)

Capt Steven L. Bennett class

• Length: 687 ft 0 in (209.4 m)
• Beam: 100 ft 0 in (30.5 m)
• Draft: 38 ft 1 in (11.6 m)
• Displacement: 52,878 long tons (53,727 t)
• Speed: 18.3 knots (33.9 km/h)
• Civilian: 24 contract mariners

Maj. Bernard F. Fisher class

• Length: 652 ft (199 m)
• Beam: 105 ft (32 m)
• Draft: 34 ft (10 m)
• Displacement: 48,000 long tons (48,770 t)
• Speed: 19 knots (35 km/h)
• Civilian: 24 contract mariners

1st Lt. Harry L. Martin class

• Length: 754 ft 0 in (229.8 m)
• Beam: 105 ft 10 in (32.3 m)
• Draft: 35 ft 11 in (10.9 m)
• Displacement: 51,531 long tons (52,358 t)
• Speed: 17 knots (31 km/h)
• Civilian: 25 contract mariners

LCPL Roy M. Wheat class

• Length: 863 ft 2 in (263.1 m)
• Beam: 98 ft 5 in (30.0 m)
• Draft: 35 ft 0 in (10.7 m)
• Displacement: 50,570 long tons (51,381 t)
• Speed: 20.5 knots (38 km/h)
• Civilian: 29 contract mariners

LTC John U. D. Page class

• Length: 949.8 ft (289.5 m)
• Beam: 105.9 ft (32.3 m)
• Draft: 35.0 ft (10.7 m)
• Displacement: 74,500 long tons (75,695 t)
• Speed: 18 knots (33 km/h)
• Civilian: 20 contract mariners

High-speed vessels

HSV 2 class

• Length: 331 ft 4 in (101.0 m)
• Beam: 87 ft 5 in (26.6 m)
• Draft: 11 ft 0 in (3.4 m)
• Displacement: 1,463.6 short tons (1,328 t)
• Speed: 35 knots (65 km/h)
• Civilian: 17 contract mariners
• Military: as required by mission

Large, medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ships

Watson class

The of LMSR built at National Steel and Shipbuilding Company in San Diego

• Length: 950 ft (290 m)
• Beam: 106 ft (32 m)
• Draft: 34 ft (10 m)
• Displacement: 62,644 long tons (63,649 t)
• Power Plant: 2 GE Marine LM 2500 gas turbines; 64,000 hp (47,725 kW); 2 shafts, cp props
• Speed: 24 knots (44 km/h)
• Civilian: 30 contract mariners
• Military: 5

Ships

Tankers

• Length: 615 ft (187 m)
• Beam: 90 ft (27 m)
• Draft: 36 ft (11 m)
• Displacement: 39,624 long tons (40,260 t)
• Speed: 16.0 knots (30 km/h)
• Civilian: 24 contract mariners

Offshore petroleum distribution system

• Length: 348.5 ft (106.2 m)
• Beam: 70 ft (21.3 m)
• Draft: 26.0 ft (7.9 m)
• Displacement:
• Speed: 15 knots (28 km/h)
• Civilian: 26 contract mariners

Activated Ready Reserve Force ships

The following are part of the National Defense Reserve Fleet but have been activated and are pre-positioned.

Modular cargo delivery system ship

• Length: 565 ft (172 m)
• Beam: 76 ft (23 m)
• Draft: 31 ft (9 m)
• Displacement: 22,929 long tons (23,297 t)
• Speed: 17.0 knots (31 km/h)
• Civilian: 38 contract mariners

Wright class

Dedicated to USMC aviation logistics support

• Length: 602 ft 0 in (183 m)
• Beam: 90 ft 2 in (27 m)
• Draft: 32 ft 10 in (10 m)
• Displacement: 23,800 long tons (24,182 t)
• Speed: 19 knots (35 km/h)
• Civilian: 41 contract mariners

Ships

Former ships

Buffalo Soldier class

• Length: 670 ft 0 in (204.2 m)
• Beam: 87 ft 0 in (26.5 m)
• Draft: 34 ft 6 in (10.5 m)
• Displacement: 26,378 long tons (26,801 t)
• Speed: 16 knots (30 km/h)
• Civilian: 21 contract mariners

Ships

Corporal Louis J. Hauge Jr. class

Named for Medal of Honor recipient Louis J. Hauge Jr. USMC, the Corporal Louis J. Hauge Jr. class is the original class of MPS ships chartered by Military Sealift Command. The five ships are Maersk Line ships converted by Bethlehem Steel. During conversion, the ships gained an additional 157 feet (48 m) amidships and a helicopter landing pad, among other things. They have since been returned to Maersk for commercial use and are no longer part of the MPS program.

• Builder: Odense Staalskibsvaerft A/S, Lindo
• Power Plant: 1 Sulzer 7RND76M diesel; 16,800 hp (12,528 kW); 1 shaft; bow thruster
• Length: 755 ft (230 m)
• Beam: 90 ft (27 m)
• Displacement: 46,552 long tons (47,299 t) full load
• Speed: 17.5 knots (32 km/h)

Ships

• • MV Cpl. Louis J. Hauge Jr. (T-AK 3000) (formerly MV Estelle Maersk)
  • (formerly MV Eleo Maersk)
  • (formerly MV Emma Maersk)
  • (formerly MV Emilie Maersk)
  • (formerly Pvt. Harry Fisher, MV Evelyn Maersk)
• Crew: 32 civilians, 10 technicians

Further reading

• 'The Maritime Prepositioning Force and the U.S. Marines,' Asia-Pacific Defense Forum, Spring 1999
• Military Sealift Command. "Maritime Prepositioning Ship Squadron Two". http://www.msc.navy.mil/mpstwo/. "MPS Squadron Two ships operate out of Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory."