Salvatore R. Mercogliano, Ph.D. –
The Navy oiler – a tanker designed to refuel other ships while at sea – shuddered from the hit. Almost immediately, water began to flood into the engine room and at least one of the ship’s rudders was out of service. The damage and flow of water proved challenging for the crew. As the only US Navy fuel ship in the area capable of supporting a carrier strike group came to a stop, the vulnerability of the thin lifeline of American afloat logistics became apparent. How would an entire carrier strike group remain operational without fuel for its planes and escorts? With one stroke, the hitting power of a substantial portion of the U.S. Navy was reduced.
For Want of an Oiler: The Fragile State of America’s Afloat Logistics Fleet
Tag: USS Hershel “Woody” Williams
Navy to sideline 17 vessels due to manpower shortage
The Navy will reportedly sideline 17 vessels due to a manpower shortage that makes it difficult to properly crew and operate ships across the fleet.
Navy to sideline 17 vessels due to manpower shortage, operating crews will be redistributed: report
Related:
Navy Could Sideline 17 Support Ships Due to Manpower Issues
“This is basically the result of many years of neglect and mismanagement of their force,” Sal Mercogliano, former MSC mariner and associate professor of history at Campbell University told USNI News on Thursday.
“They are just burning through people.”…
While the order has yet to be signed, Mercogliano has tracked EPFs beginning to return to the U.S. from aboard far from the end of their expected service lives.
“These ships have a lot of life in them,” he said.
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 