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Military Sealift Command (MSC) has completed its support of the Arctic Expeditionary Capabilities Exercise 2019 off the coast of San Diego, Calif.
Over the course of two weeks, MSC exercised operational control of the The Maritime Administration (MARAD) tanker ship SS Petersburg, at anchor off shore. During the course of operations, Petersburg successfully deployed and recovered an 800 ton, a single-anchor leg mooring (SALM) buoy while sitting in a 12-degree list. The SALM was then connected to an offshore petroleum discharge system (OPDS), that delivered water, via hoses, to shore; a process that can deliver fresh, drinking water to areas where local infrastructure has been damaged or a beach is inaccessible by conventional methods, such as following a natural disaster like a hurricane or earthquake.
The Military Sealift Command Pacific (MSCPAC) team, along with Petersburg civilian crew, worked alongside Navy Seabees from Amphibious Construction Battalion 1, and Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit One, ensuring a successful deployment and recovery of the SALM.
“It has been amazing being out here and working with such a diverse group of professionals!” said Julie Flaherty, MSCPAC’s liaison officer on Petersburg. “The knowledge base of everyone, from the Seabees to the civilian contractors onboard, was vast and watching the groups get together, work, share information, and carry out a successful deployment and recovery of the SALM was incredible. It really shows the dedication and professionalism of the Navy and of the civilians who support the Navy and MSC’s missions.”
Exercises like AECE, provide effective training, ensuring forces are capable, interoperable, and deployable on short notice. In addition, working together across the commands increases the ability of all participants to plan, communicate and conduct complex amphibious and expeditionary combat support operations. These same skills would be critical to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.
“We have learned so many lessons over this past two weeks,” said Capt. Gabe Varela, Commander, MSCPAC. “Exercises like this one really puts concepts into a real-world scenario and to allow us to learn in a constantly changing environment alongside the subject matter experts where we can ask questions and improve techniques, so we will be ready and confidant in an actual deployment of OPDS during a contingency or a humanitarian mission.”
AECE is one in a series of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command exercises in 2019 that prepares joint forces to respond to crises in the Indo-Pacific. AECE will specifically test joint expeditionary force logistical transfer capabilities in the Arctic environment, including wet logistics over the shore, expeditionary mine countermeasures, mobile diving and salvage and an offshore petroleum discharge system. Navy and Marine Corps participants will conduct operational and tactical actions to validate the Littoral Operations in a Contested Environment (LOCE) and the Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO) concepts.
| Date Taken: | 09.27.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 09.27.2019 14:34 |
| Story ID: | 344256 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 108 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Military Sealift Command Concludes Support of Southern California Leg of Arctic Expeditionary Capabilities Exercise 2019, by Sarah Cannon, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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