Prepositioning Ships – 36 (as of Sept. 30, 2004) Combat Prepositioning Ships – 10 LMSRs   USNS Charlton (T-AKR 314)   USNS Dahl (T-AKR 312)   USNS Pomeroy (T-AKR 316)   USNS Red Cloud (T-AKR 313)   USNS Sisler (T-AKR 311)   USNS Soderman (T-AKR 317)   USNS Watkins (T-AKR 315)   USNS Watson (T-AKR 310) CONTAINER SHIPS   MV Staff Sgt. Edward A. Carter Jr.      (T-AK 4544)   MV Lt. Col. John U.D. Page      (T-AK 4496) Maritime Prepositioning Ships – 16 SQUADRON ONE   MV PFC William B. Baugh      (T-AK 3001)   MV 2nd Lt. John P. Bobo      (T-AK 3008)   SS PFC Eugene A. Obregon      (T-AK 3006)   USNS Lance Corporal Roy M. Wheat      (T-AK 3016)   MV PFC Dewayne T. Williams      (T-AK 3009) SQUADRON TWO   MV Sgt. William R. Button      (T-AK 3012)   SS Sgt. Matej J. Kocak      (T-AK 3005)   MV 1st Lt. Baldomero Lopez      (T-AK 3010)   MV Pvt. Franklin J. Phillips      (T-AK 3004)   USNS Gunnery Sgt. Fred W. Stockham      (T-AK 3017) SQUADRON THREE   MV Pvt. James Anderson Jr.      (T-AK 3002)   MV 1st Lt. Alex Bonnyman      (T-AKR 3003)   MV Cpl. Louis J. Hauge      (T-AK 3000)   MV 1st Lt. Jack Lummus      (T-AK 3011)   USNS 1st Lt. Harry L. Martin      (T-AK 3015)   SS Maj. Stephen W. Pless      (T-AK 3007) Logistics Prepositioning Ships – 10 DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY (TANKERS)   SS Chesapeake (T-AOT 5084)   SS Petersburg (T-AOT 9101) U.S. AIR FORCE (CONTAINER SHIPS)   MV Capt. Steven L. Bennett      (T-AK 4296)   MV Maj. Bernard F. Fisher      (T-AK 4396)   MV Merlin (AK 323)   MV A1C William A. Pitsenbarger      (T-AK 4638) U.S. NAVY (BREAK-BULK SHIP)   SS Cape Jacob (T-AK 5029) AVIATION LOGISTICS      SUPPORT SHIPS – 2   SS Curtis (T-AVB 4)   SS Wright (T-AVB 3) HIGH SPEED VESSEL (CATAMARAN)   Westpac Express

t the end of FY 2004, MSC's Afloat Prepositioning Force consisted of 36 ships. Normally 34 ships would be operating at sites in the Mediterranean Sea, Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean and Guam/Saipan in the Western Pacific Ocean or reloading or awaiting refurbishment of their prepositioning cargo at ports in the United States. However, due to mission requirements for the global war on terrorism and Operation Iraqi Freedom, many prepositioning ships were working in the Sealift Program or were placed in reduced operating status. Those working in the Sealift Program delivered 6.9 million square feet of combat cargo to U.S. forces for the global war on terrorism. The remaining two ships in the Prepositioning Program were U.S. Marine Corps aviation support ships and were maintained in reduced operating status on the U.S. East and West Coasts.

Maritime Prepositioning Ships

During FY 2004, the Marine Corps elected to redistribute the 16 ships among the three Maritime Prepositioning Ship Squadrons, assigning at least one ship from each of the major MPS ship classes to each squadron. This allowed more flexibility in replacing any ship in any squadron with a similarly loaded ship from a different squadron, if needed. MPS Squadron One and MPS Squadron Three were affected by the reassignment.

USNS Lance Cpl. Roy M. Wheat began her first deployment with MPS Squadron One after she loaded out in March 2004. Wheat is a uniquely designed gas turbine propulsion ship, the only one of its kind among the MPS.

Vice Adm. Brewer observes as Margaret Taylor, sponsor of USNS Lance Cpl. Roy M. Wheat and wife of U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor of Mississippi, breaks the traditional bottle of champagne against the railing of the MSC prepositioning ship during Wheat’s official naming ceremony. Photo by Barry Lake.

MV 2nd Lt. John P. Bobo, USNS Lance Cpl. Roy M. Wheat, MV Pfc. William B. Baugh, and SS Pfc. Eugene A. Obregon were all assigned to MPS Squadron One. Obregon was then released to MSC's Sealift Program for common-user service and participated in numerous Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom missions. Squadron One's commodore and his staff returned to afloat status in November 2003 after staffing MSC Office Souda Bay for more than 10 months. They also hosted the annual Maritime Prepositioning Force conference in Tallinn, Estonia, in June.

Squadron Two ships SS Sgt. Matej Kocak, MV Pvt. Franklin J. Phillips, MV Sgt. William R. Button and MV 1st Lt. Baldomero Lopez off-loaded their prepositioning cargo in Kuwait and were placed in reduced operating status. Squadron Two's commodore and his staff remained deployed to the Central Command area of responsibility, acting as full-time port operations coordinator and teaming up with the Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command to facilitate cargo operations in the Persian Gulf region.

At the end of FY 2004, Squadron Three was composed of MV Cpl. Louis J. Hauge, MV Pvt. James Anderson Jr., MV 1st Lt. Alex Bonnyman, MV 1st Lt. Jack Lummus, SS Maj. Stephen W. Pless and USNS 1st Lt. Harry L. Martin. They formed the backbone of Pacific Fleet's prepositioning response force during the year. Squadron Three's commodore and his staff remained embarked in the Guam/Saipan area throughout the year.

USNS Gunnery Sgt. Fred W. Stockham assumed a new role supporting Pacific Fleet operations in the global war on terrorism. She will return to her prepositioning duties in 2005.

All Maritime Prepositioning Ships are long-term charters except for Wheat, Martin and Stockham, which are government owned. Commercial mariners operate all 16 ships.

A visit, board, search and seizure team of U.S. Navy Sailors maneuvers a rigid-hull inflatable boat in the waters off the coast of Poland, as they prepare to board MSC Maritime Prepositioning Ship MV 2nd Lt. John P. Bobo during the military exercise Baltic Operations 2004. Photo by PH1 Shawn P. Eklund, USN.

Combat Prepositioning Ships

In FY 2004, large, medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ships, or LMSRs, continued to support the U.S. military. USNS Watson remained prepositioned in Saipan throughout the year except for a lift of cargo from Japan to Hawaii. The remaining seven ships were heavily employed moving and positioning Army cargo in support of continuing combat operations in Iraq. In 2003 these prepositioning ships delivered their cargo to the theater and then returned to the United States for more cargo to support deploying units. However, in 2004 Army units and a significant amount of material began to rotate out of theater for the first time. The LMSRs were transferred to the Sealift Program's common-user pool to carry combat cargo both into and out of the Persian Gulf area. The LMSRs are government owned, but are operated by commercially contracted crews.

At the fiscal year's end, container ships MV Lt. Col. John U.D. Page and her sister ship MV Staff Sgt. Edward A. Carter Jr. were on station with prepositioned Army ammunition at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.

In May, Carter conducted a partial off-load in Kuwait and a partial back-load in August in Diego Garcia. Both ships are long-term charters operated for MSC by commercial mariner crews.

One of nearly 300 Army Stryker vehicles rumbles up the stern ramp of large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ship USNS Sisler during loading operations in Tacoma, Wash. Photo by Susan Melow.

Logistics Prepositioning Ships

Four ammunition container ships supporting the U.S. Air Force were deployed worldwide: one in the Mediterranean Sea, two at Diego Garcia and one in the Western Pacific near Guam/Saipan. In addition, one Navy ammunition ship deployed to the Western Pacific.

In FY 2004, two tankers fitted with offshore petroleum distribution systems carried fuel for the Defense Energy Support Center.

Maritime prepositioning ship MV Pfc. Dewayne T. Williams off-loads tracked bridge sections as part of troop and equipment rotations marking the transition from Operation Iraqi Freedom I to Operation Iraqi Freedom II. Photo by JO2 Wes Eplen, USN.

High-speed chartered catamaran Westpac Express continued to serve as the backbone of the Third Marine Expeditionary Force transportation system between Okinawa, Japan and Korea.

The two Marine aviation logistics support ships, SS Wright and SS Curtis, remained in reduced operating status in the United States. Wright conducted an exercise activation mid-year and then returned to ROS.

U.S. Marines off-load with their gear from high-speed vessel Westpac Express during Balikatan Exercise 2004 at Subic Bay, Philippines. Photo by Lance Cpl. Thomas D. Hudzinski, USMC.