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Australian Replenishment Ship Tops Off Tortuga's Tank

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS070620-22
Release Date: 6/20/2007 10:06:00 PM

By Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Brandon A. Myrick, USS Tortuga Public Affairs

USS TORTUGA, At Sea (NNS) -- USS Tortuga (LSD 46) completed a refueling at sea (RAS) on June 15 with an Australian resupply ship during the bilateral exercise Talisman Saber 2007 (TS07).

The refueling, provided by the replenishment ship HMAS Sirius (OR-266), was a good opportunity for the Tortuga crew to gain important skills in RAS procedures while working alongside members from the Australian military.

The RAS reflects the major emphasis of TS07, set to bring nearly 32,000 military members from the United States and Australia for joint training to improve combat readiness and enhance regional stability.

“Being able to conduct an operation such as RAS is vital to a forward-deployed ship such as Tortuga in order to stay mission ready at all times,” said 1st Division Officer Ensign Leslie M. Mathews, whose deck team were the key components to the evolution.

Sirius transferred 185,000 gallons of diesel fuel marine (DFM) to Tortuga.

Beyond providing the needed fuel, the RAS allowed Tortuga’s crew to train with Australian forces.

“This is the first RAS working in coalition with other countries' military for many of the crew members and because of proper training they all did great,” said Fire Controlman 2nd Class (SW) Sumi Mclennan, who is part of the RAS team. “Although the Australians were not aboard Tortuga to work side by side, we all pulled together and made this a successful and safe evolution.”

Harsh weather conditions, which consisted of rain and wind, made the RAS difficult but “Team Tortuga” worked together to make for a successful underway evolution. The key, said Tortuga Sailors, was team work, not only from a U.S. perspective, but from a U.S.-Australia perspective.

“Communicating with the Sirius crew went smoothly, even with the weather, due to both of us being familiar with the proper phone talking procedures,” said Seaman Raymond Woodworth. “I could hardly tell that we were working with a ship from another country. I give a lot of credit to the training by my upper chain of command. I know the [the Australians] also were trained very well.”

With the assistance of the Australian vessel, Tortuga and other U.S. ships involved with TS07 are now fully capable of conducting this exercise.

“Everyone did an excellent job and the evolution went as planned,” said Tortuga Commanding Officer Cmdr. Todd A. Lewis. “Team Tortuga acted very professional, and it goes to show the world how the U.S. and Australian team works together to complete the mission.”

Exercise TS07 is a U.S.- and Australian-led Joint Task Force exercise preparing the two militaries for crisis-action planning and execution of contingency operations.

The exercise is designed to maintain a high level of interoperability between U.S. and Australian forces, demonstrating their commitment to military alliance and regional security. The exercise also supports increased flexibility and readiness, which are force multipliers in winning the global war on terrorism.

Tortuga is forward-deployed out of Sasebo, Japan, and serves Task Force 76, the Navy’s only forward-deployed amphibious force. Task Force 76 is headquartered at White Beach Naval Facility in Okinawa, Japan, with an operating detachment in Sasebo, Japan.