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USNS Rainier joins MSC logistics fleet

Military Sealift Command Release

Release Date: 8/29/2003

NAVAL BASE, Bremerton, Washington, August 29, 2003 - USS Rainier became the third of four U.S. Navy Supply-class fast combat support ships to leave commissioned service for an even more active role with the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command at a formal 10 a.m. transfer ceremony held here today. United States Naval Ship Rainier joins more than 30 civil service-crewed ships providing combat logistics services to the Navy fleets worldwide.

Rainier, which as a Navy ship was crewed by a complement of 544 Sailors, will now have a civilian crew of 176 mariners. By cutting the crew in half, operating costs are lowered dramatically. Those mariners will be accompanied by a small military department of 28 Sailors for communication support and supply coordination. An additional 30+ Sailors will be aboard to support helicopter operations.

The transfer of Rainier and her sister ships, USNS Arctic and USNS Supply, and the future transfer of the fourth ship in the class, USS Bridge, in June of next year are part of the Navy's continuing transformation to a more efficient and cost effective fighting force for the 21st century. According to a May 1998 Center for Naval Analysis study, the Navy will save a projected $76 million annually with the change.

The transfers also free up a total of 108 active duty Navy officers and 1,996 enlisted Sailors to return to war-fighting roles for which they were trained. And, because MSC ships are not constrained by operational and personnel limitations placed upon Sailor-crewed ships, USNS ships have an 80 percent availability for at-sea service compared to 24 percent for the Sailor-crewed ships. This increased availability means fewer ships are required to support logistics missions.

With a top speed in excess of 25 knots, the 754-foot fast combat support ships are ideally suited to travel with U.S. Navy battle groups to provide underway replenishment of fuel, ammunition, spare parts and stores at sea, eliminating the need for the combatants to constantly return to port.

Today's transfer ceremony began with the arrival of the official party: Navy Cmdr. Joseph G. Klein, commanding officer of USS Rainier, led the group, followed by Merchant Marine Capt. William C. Baldwin, who will command the ship under MSC. Capt. Juan L. Chavez, USN, commander of Military Sealift Command Pacific; Rear Adm. Leendert Hering, USN, Commander of Naval Surface Group Pacific Northwest; and Vice Adm. David Brewer III, USN, Commander of Military Sealift Command and guest speaker for the event.

As is tradition, the Rainier's commissioning pennant was lowered during the ceremony and given to the departing commanding officer, Cmdr. Klein. The ship's ownership certificate passed to Capt. Chavez, transferring ownership to the Military Sealift Command. Capt. Chavez then directed Capt. Baldwin, the ship's new civilian master, to "place the ship in service." With those words, USS Rainier became USNS Rainier.

In addition to the Rainier and her sister ships, MSC's logistics force includes fleet oilers, ammunition ships, stores ships, fleet ocean tugs and hospital ships. From January to May 2003, the initial phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom, this force pumped more than 117 million gallons of marine diesel and aircraft fuel and delivered countless tons of food and ammunition to Navy ships around the globe.

MSC missions include underway replenishment of U.S. Navy ships at sea, prepositioning and transport of defense cargo and at-sea data collection for U.S. military and government agencies.

The Navy's Military Sealift Command normally operates 120 civilian-crewed, noncombatant ships for a variety of missions around the world. That number expanded to more than 210 in March as additional ships were activated from reduced operating status or chartered for the command's support of U.S. forces in Operation Iraqi Freedom.