Front Page |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| By MICHAEL R. McKAY | |
|
The U.S. merchant fleet could soon be called upon to supply and support
U.S. armed forces in a war with Iraq, and much of the important service
could fall to ships that are manned by American Maritime Officers.
No specific war strategy had been disclosed at press time, and no specific sealift requirements had been identified. But it was agreed that cargo ships will be crucial, especially if the war widens beyond Iraq or persists for several months or longer, and AMO engine, deck and radio-electronics officers are aboard most of the civilian contract-crewed vessels the Department of Defense would rely on. One certain immediate source of sealift would be the fleet of ships pre-positioned in the British Indian Ocean Territory of Diego Garcia, the Mediterranean, and the Far East under Military Sealift Command charter. These vessels are stocked with tanks, trucks, trailers and other vehicles, weapons, ammunition and other supplies for the Marine Corps, the Army and the Air Force. Every pre-positioned ship currently assigned to Diego Garcia is manned in the licensed positions by AMO. These include the large, medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ships USNS Dahl, USNS Pomeroy, USNS Watson, USNS Charlton, USNS Watkins, USNS Red Cloud, and USNS Sisler, all operated for MSC by Maersk Line, Ltd, of Norfolk, Va. The 950-foot vessels could soon be joined by the newest LMSR in the Maersk fleet, the USNS Soderman, which was delivered by National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. in San Diego on Sept. 26. Also stationed in Diego Garcia are smaller roll-on/roll-off and multi-purpose ships operated under AMO contract by Maersk Line Ltd., American Overseas Marine Inc. (AMSEA), RR&VO LLC, and Sealift Inc., and Ready Reserve Force (RRF) ships operated by AMSEA. U.S.-flagged, AMO-manned ships stationed in Guam and Saipan include roll-on/roll-off vessels, tankers and auxiliary crane ships activated from the RRF. Another sealift source is the fleet of eight fast sealift-roll-on/roll-off ships operated for MSC by AMSEA. These converted ships, known widely as the former SL-7s, are the USNS Altair, USNS Algol, USNS Antares, USNS Bellatrix, USNS Capella, USNS Denebola, USNS Pollux and USNS Regulus. Each carries a full complement of AMO officers. Additional tonnage would be drawn from the government-owned RRF, a fleet of 76 ships of varied size and configuration and held in varied readiness states for breakout as needed. The RRF is overseen by the Maritime Administration in the Department of Transportation but the ships are under MSC control when activated. AMO provides the licensed officers for 39 of the 74 reserve vessels. The ships manned by AMO are operated by AMSEA, Crowley Liner Services, Interocean Ugland Management Corp., Ocean Duchess Inc., and Pacific-Gulf Marine. The fleet includes break-bulk freighters, aviation logistics support ships, auxiliary crane ships, tankers, LASH vessels, and roll-on/roll-off ships, and most are intended for breakout in four or five days. If necessary, DOD would turn to ships currently operating in commercial markets, beginning with U.S.-flag ships participating in the Maritime Security Program and those signatory to VISA, or Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreements. Under the MSP, 47 roll-on/roll-off, container and lighter-aboard ships draw $2.1 million a piece each year from MARAD to help them compete in commercial foreign trade. In exchange, the ships, their crews and all intermodal and logistics support equipment and systems owned or leased by participating companies are available on demand to DOD for strategic sealift and support services. AMO represents the officers aboard seven of the ships--the container vessels Maersk Texas, Maersk Tennessee, Maersk Colorado and Maersk California, operated by Maersk Line Ltd. (Maersk is replacing these four with larger vessels) and the car carriers Faust, Fidelio and Tanabata, operated by Pacific-Gulf Marine. VISA provides DOD with cargo space on a total of 116 U.S.-flag commercial ships, including those enrolled in the Maritime Security Program. Many VISA vessels are manned by AMO officers. If absolutely necessary in a long, difficult war, the U.S. could draw ships and sealift manpower from the deep-draft domestic fleet operating under the 1920 Jones Act. The law reserves waterborne cargoes moving between and among U.S. ports for merchant vessels owned, built, flagged and manned in the U.S. Under that circumstance, the U.S. would have to allow foreign vessels to serve Jones Act markets to keep those cargoes moving--at significant risk of excessive freight rates, unreliable service and terrorist attack within U.S. borders. The foreign-flag sealift option is just as unpleasant. During Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in the Persian Gulf in 1990 and 1991, DOD hired foreign-flagged and crewed ships at what many said was exorbitant cost, and there were documented cases of foreign crews refusing to bring cargoes to points in and near the war zone. The possibility of terrorists nesting among crews on foreign-flagged ships (especially those registered under flags of convenience) adds a new dimension of concern. These sealift issues will remain in focus as war approaches and proceeds, and AMO will share in the dialogue. Meanwhile, we--like all civilian American seafarers of all stations and all unions--are ready to respond, no matter what the size or scope of the mission. |
|
|
|
Front Page
|
|