Military Sealift Command’s Combat Logistics Force vessel USNS Medgar Evers (T-AKE 13) returned to Naval Station Norfolk December 19, after completing a four-month deployment, participating in a myriad of joint operations from Exercise Joint Warrior 2020 to conducting MV 22 Osprey operations in the Mediterranean Sea.
Transiting 32,875 nautical miles, with a mission essential crew of 100 men and women, Medgar Evers served as the primary dry cargo ammunition ship in Sixth Fleet’s area of responsibility. “Dry cargo ships play a vital role in the Navy’s logistics system, making it possible for combatant ships to stay forward deployed in order to protect America’s interests worldwide,” said Capt. Janice G. Smith, Commodore of MSC Atlantic in Norfolk, Va.
USNS Medgar Evers’ flexibility and commitment enabled the safe delivery of 3.6 million gallons of diesel fuel marine and 980 pallets of vital stores and ordinance during 31 underway and seven at-sea-replenishments with both U.S. Navy and Coalition ships from France, Greece, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
Congratulations and welcome home Medgar Evers, Smith said. Your performance showcased why MSC’s CLF ships are the backbone for sustained operations at sea, and the CIVMARS that man and operate these ships are the most critical piece of that equation.”
USNS Medgar Evers, a Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship of the United States Navy, is the thirteenth Navy ship named in honor of World War II veteran and civil rights activist Medgar Evers. The ship was named on October 9, 2009, launched on October 29, 2011, christened on November 12, 2011, and sponsored by Evers’ widow Myrlie Evers-Williams. MSC accepted delivery of Medgar Evers on April 24, 2012.
On June 10, 2020, MSC awarded USNS Medgar Evers the Maritime Excellence Award for the command’s underway replenishment category. The “E” award is one of MSC’s top honors presented to CLF ships. T-AKE 13 was nominated for outperforming all other T-AKEs in its class during competitive-year 2019. “This award appropriately reflects the endless hours the ship and crew have spent maintaining the highest degree of operational readiness, and it is a true testament to the elite seamanship of the civil service mariners assigned to Medgar Evers,” Smith said.
CLF ships provide logistics support to deployed U.S. Navy Combatants and coalition force ships to include fuel, ordnance, food, repair/spare parts and other stores. These ships enable combatants to remain on station and continue their primary mission, without having to resupply at a port. They are particularly important when combatants are unable to receive supplies from local ports in theater due to force protections measures.
CLF ships are U.S. Government-owned and are operated by U.S. Government CIVMARS. All CLF ships are capable of integrating rotary-wing aircraft operations.
MSC operates approximately 120 non-combatant, civilian-crewed ships that replenish U.S. Navy ships, conduct specialized missions, and strategically preposition combat cargo at sea around the world while moving military cargo and supplies used by deployed U.S. forces and coalition partners.
For more news from Military Sealift Command, visit www.msc.navy.mil.
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