Military Sealift Command fleet replenishment oiler USNS Henry J. Kaiser (T-AO 187) continues its support of the of the joint training exercise, Northern Edge 2019, in the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex.
To date, Kaiser has provided logistics services to the U.S. Navy ships participating in Northern Edge, delivering 179 pallets of food and provisions via replenishment at sea.
Alaska’s strategic location is vital to maintaining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. Being able to conduct cargo operations in Seward allows MSC and its ships to provide much needed supplies to ships conducting operations in the area, or passing through to other theaters of operation.
“Being a part of exercise Northern Edge 2019 is a great opportunity for MSC,” said Capt. Gabe Varela, commander Military Sealift Command Pacific. “Conducting logistics support operations in an area that we don’t normally operate in, along with our Navy counterparts, is another example of preparations that will allow us to respond to crises in the Indo-Pacific region.”
Kaiser made history earlier this month by conducting the first ever cargo operation by MSC in Seward.
Northern Edge 2019 is a joint training exercise led by Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, scheduled for May 13-24, 2019 on and above central Alaska ranges and the Gulf of Alaska. Northern Edge 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. The exercise is designed to sharpen participants’ tactical combat skills, to improve command, control and communication relationships, and to develop interoperable plans and programs across the joint force. Nearly 10,000 personnel from U.S. military units stationed in the continental United States and from U.S. installations in the Indo-Pacific will participate with approximately 200 aircraft from all services.