Balikatan 2017 underway with Military Sealift Command’s USNS Fisher offload

Military Sealift Command Far East
Story by Grady Fontana

Date: 05.08.2017
Posted: 05.08.2017 02:49
News ID: 232966
U.S. Soldiers prepare for Balikatan 2017

SINGAPORE—Military Sealift Command’s large, medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ship USNS Fisher (T-AKR 301) arrived in Subic Bay, Zambales, Philippines and unloaded cargo in support of exercise Balikatan 2017 (BK 33-2017), April 30.

Balikatan is an annual U.S.-Philippine military bilateral training event focused on a variety of missions, including humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, counterterrorism, and other combined military operations. BK 33-2017 will take place in the Philippines from May 8 to 19.

Concurrently, the USNS Fisher is participating in a mobility operation called Pacific Pathways 17-1 (PP17-1). Pacific Pathways is an innovation that links a series of USPACOM-directed Security Cooperation exercises with allied and partner militaries to a single MSC charter vessel on a single voyage plan that delivers U.S. Army equipment to support the various exercises.

During PP17-1, the USNS Fisher departed Tacoma, Wash., in January with equipment from Joint Base Lewis-McChord. The ship has supported exercise Cobra Gold 2017 in Thailand, and Combined Distribution Exercise 2017 in South Korea prior to arriving in Subic Bay for BK 33-2017.

MSC operates approximately 115 non-combatant, civilian-crewed ships that replenish U.S. Navy ships, conduct specialized missions, strategically preposition combat cargo at sea around the world and move military cargo and supplies used by deployed U.S. forces and coalition partners.