The voyage through the theater lasted 68 days, including nine port visits, and a 14 day Preventative Maintenance Availability (PMAV) in Bahrain. The deployment marked the first of the LCS deployments to 5th Fleet, and confirmed the successful proof of concept will pave the way to increased LCS presence in the theater. The success relied heavily on collaboration and a hands-on approach between all supporting mission partners.
The National Security Strategy places emphasis on success in geopolitical competition to shape the future of the international order. To that end, after years of focus in the US Central Command (CENTCOM) AOR to support operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, the structure of the AOR and the forces allocated to 5th Fleet continue to shift as well. Within the global competition paradigm, the Suez Canal, Bab-el-Mandeb, and Straits of Hormuz require a persistent naval presence to support security of global commerce. USS Sioux City (LCS 11) deployed to 5th Fleet supporting Commander, Destroyer Squadron 50 (CDS 50) and Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) to promote regional security and stability.
The minimal manning construct for the LCS ship class requires augmentation from shore based facilities to support day-to-day operations. Augmentation to the ship’s Supply Department comes in the form of a Logistic Support Team (LST). The Sioux City is primarily supported by the LST out of NAVSUP FLC Jacksonville, but part of this historic deployment included additional support from the forward LST construct at NAVSUP FLC Bahrain.
NAVSUP FLC Bahrain has billeted support in the Operations and Contracting departments to support LCS deployments to 5th Fleet. NAVSUP FLC Bahrain’s Operations department provided boots on the ground support during port visits including: Alexandria and Berenice, Egypt, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Fujairah and Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates, Manama, Bahrain, and Duqm, Oman. NAVSUP FLC Bahrain’s contracting team also supported all port visits in theater, as well as ship support, and three PMAVs in Bahrain, Greece, and Denmark.
As the Sioux City made her way through 5th Fleet, NAVSUP FLC Bahrain and mission partners throughout the AOR learned valuable lessons to better support future LCS deployments to the AOR. The alignment between NAVSUP FLC Bahrain, NAVSUP FLC Jacksonville, Forward Deployed Regional Maintenance Center (FDRMC), Littoral Combat Ship Squadron (LCSRON) 2, Combined Task Force (CTF) 53, and Commander, US Navy Central Command (USCOMNAVCENT was critical to the success of the deployment. NAVSUP FLC Bahrain Logistic Support Representatives and CTF-53 personnel combined to provide support for all port visits, ensuring delivery of cargo, mail, and provisions throughout the theater. FDRMC and the Contracting team at FLC Bahrain ensured execution of maintenance to maintain operational availability. LCSRON 2 provided a Liaison team to communicate ship requirements to USCOMNAVCENT and CDS 50 staff.
NAVSUP FLC Bahrain is one of eight FLCs under Commander, NAVSUP which is headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and employs a diverse, worldwide workforce of more than 25,000 military and civilian personnel. NAVSUP and the U.S. Supply Corps conduct and enable supply chain, acquisition, operational logistics and Sailor & family care activities with our mission partners to generate readiness and sustain naval forces worldwide to prevent and decisively win wars.
Learn more at www.navsup.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/navsup and https://twitter.com/navsupsyscom.