Tag Archives: MARAD
Threats to Merchant Ships Growing; Mariners Face Pirates, Lethal Drones
USS Lassen (DDG-82) escorts the merchant vessel Tomahawk through the Strait of Hormuz on Nov. 18, 2019. US Navy Photo
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Electronic spoofing, jammed communications and navigation systems, armed drone attacks and pirates are challenges American crews on U.S.- flagged ships in the Ready Reserve Force and Military Sealift Command already face, a panel of maritime experts said Wednesday. Read More →
TRANSCOM Rethinking Sealift in Future Conflict for New Study
Expeditionary fast transport ship USNS Brunswick (T-EPF 6) departs Naval Base Guam, passing the MSC expeditionary fast transport ship USNS Fall River (T-EPF 4) and marking the start of Pacific Partnership 2019. Navy photo
A military mobility study due out in June will place a greater emphasis on smaller, lower-draft vessels that will ferry supplies, troops and vehicles inside a theater, U.S. Transportation Command's top general said on Tuesday. Read More →
Navy, Marines Will Need Recapitalized Sealift, Logistics Capabilities to Succeed in Pacific Operations
By: Megan Eckstein
USS America (LHA-6) conducts a replenishment at sea with the dry cargo and ammunition ship USNS Cesar Chavez (T-AKE-14) on Aug. 12, 2020. US Navy Photo
The Navy and Marine Corps need to grow their capacity to move people and supplies to and around a contested sea space – using both manned and unmanned ships and aircraft – and the service leaders asked lawmakers today for help in creating a supply chain that can stand up to a peer competitor. Read More →
Lawmakers Question MARAD on Sealift Readiness
RRF vessel SS Cornhusker State off the coast of Haiti, February 2010. MARAD Photo
Lawmakers were skeptical the Navy could meet its sealift requirements as part of the National Defense Strategy and that the service was on track to recapitalize its aging sealift fleet. Read More →
Wittman Pushing Navy to Buy Used Cargo Ships
By: Ben Werner
A fleet of military vehicles wait pier side in preparation of Exercise Saber Strike 16 in Riga, Latvia, June 4, 2016. The vehicles were transported by a British Roll-On, Roll-Off ship from Norway for the exercise. US Marine Corps photo.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.) wants to know why the U.S. military's surge sealift capability has yet to augment its aging fleet's capabilities with used cargo ships. Read More →
MARAD: National Military Sealift Strategy Expected Soon
The Military Sealift Command maritime prepositioning ship USNS Sgt. William R. Button (T-AK 3012) is moored off the coast of Latvia for the Saber Strike 17 Maritime Prepositioning Force offload operations on May, 25, 2017. US Navy photo.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A National Maritime Strategy, expected to address the various deficiencies facing the nation's sealift capacity, is finished and awaiting final approval, a top sealift official said last week.
Report: U.S. Sealift Lacks Personnel, Hulls, National Strategy
A UH-60 Black Hawk is raised from Military Sealift Command's voyage-charter, general-purpose, heavy-lift vessel MV Ocean Grand at the pier in Sattahip, Thailand, Aug. 17, during an offload of equipment that will be used during exercise Hanuman Guardian 2018.
An aging and inactive government fleet dependent on a shrinking pool of merchant mariners to get underway is how a new report describes the U.S. military's strategic sealift capability.
DoD IG: Inaccurate Military Surge Sealift Fleet Readiness Reporting Undercuts Operational Plans
SATTAHIP, Thailand—A UH-60 Black Hawk is raised from Military Sealift Command's voyage-charter, general-purpose, heavy-lift vessel MV Ocean Grand at the pier in Sattahip, Thailand, Aug. 17, during an offload of equipment that will be used during exercise Hanuman Guardian 2018. (Courtesy photo/Released)
Inaccurate surge sealift fleet readiness reporting misled geographic combatant commanders about their ability to quickly receive equipment resupplies, according to a Department of Defense Inspector General's report. Read More →
TRANSCOM Stress Test Practiced Cargo Delivery Through Mine- and Sub-Filled Waters
190921-N-BI294-9593
NORFOLK (Sept. 21, 2019) Military Sealift Command large, medium-speed roll-on/roll-off (LMSR) vessel USNS Benavidez (T-AKR 306), departs Lambert's Point Shipyard alongside USNS Mendonca (T-AKR 303) for Turbo Activation. Navy photo
Running dark and nearly silent, last month a convoy of Military Sealift Command ships practiced delivering people and gear to the fight as part of a large U.S. Transportation Command surge sealift capability stress test.
Keeping Up With the Jones Act
By: Dana Merkel
World War II Merchant Marine recruiting poster.
In the last several weeks, the Jones Act has drawn headlines over how it has shaped the U.S. and worldwide shipping industry. After almost 100 years as a part of federal law, there's much misunderstanding as to what the law actually does. Read More →