• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Allied Navies Control Supply Sea Lanes for RIMPAC

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS060720-11
Release Date: 7/20/2006 3:01:00 PM

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Larry Foos, RIMPAC Coalition Information Bureau

PACIFIC OCEAN (NNS) -- For the first time during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC), a coalition effort is serving as the logistical and material support arm of the exercise.

Australian, Canadian and U.S. Navy Sailors are controlling the flow of materials and critical parts throughout the exercise theater during RIMPAC 2006 this summer. The execution of this coalition effort has been a tremendous success, allowing the dozens of operations held almost daily since July 6 to run smoothly.

It is a daunting task not only because of the sheer size of RIMPAC, which involves 40 naval ships and submarines and more than 160 military aircraft in a 210,000-square-mile area off Hawaii, but also because it involves coordinating with eight independent navies that each have different systems, assets and languages.

“The success of this RIMPAC is that it is truly a coalition in nature to keep those parts moving,” said Lt. Chris Angerman, Canadian naval logistics officer for the shore-based Forward Logistics Site (FLS). “Nothing is sitting on the carrier.”

One Australian and one Canadian navy officer have been designated as material control officers aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), which is one of two logistics hubs for RIMPAC 2006 (USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) is the other). Critical parts and materials are flown to those two ships as needed to keep the other participating ships and aircraft operating, and the material control officers manage the distribution network.

Lt. Cmdr. Hans Lynch, RIMPAC’s deputy assistant chief of staff for logistics, explained the critical role of these officers.

“We really couldn’t do this without them. We normally draft (U.S. Navy) Reservists for this role, considering the size of RIMPAC. But with these [allied-navy] officers, we’re getting trained professionals who do this every day. They know the material,” Lynch said.

The Canadian, Australian and U.S. navies share many of the same classes of ships, as well as similar helicopters, weapons and communications systems, which gives the material control officers an edge. But when needed, they also provide support for the other allied nations participating in RIMPAC - the United Kingdom, Peru, Chile, Republic of South Korea and Japan.

“The majority of the freight we move from here is Canadian and Australian, but we have moved one part for a Chilean navy ship and some mail for a Japanese ship,” Angerman said.

Angerman and 15 other officers and enlisted sailors representing the three navies man the FLS, located at a strategic location in Pearl Harbor. The FLS operates three H-3 Sea King helicopters at an air site at Hickam Air Force Base used exclusively for RIMPAC. The H-3s act as the material control officer’s logistical “arm” from shore to sea. The reporting structure and usage of the H-3s at RIMPAC 2006 is different from previous years and is proving effective.

“We have these three H-3s solely for our use. Usually, we have to take tactical helicopters from the ships, which can take away from the exercise. We’re having success from a logistical standpoint,” Angerman said.

“Before, the helicopters reported to [RIMPAC’s] operations director. Now they report to the air logistics officer," Lynch added. "The focus of their efforts is different from before.”

The logistical component of RIMPAC 2006 has proven to be a success not only on an operational front, but also from a coalition partnership standpoint.

“To me it’s an incredible success,” Angerman said. “We have integrated very well and are very much a team.”