Navy Plans to Make USS Ponce (LPD 15) Seal “Mothership” to Middle East

January 30, 2012

A media report says the U.S. military plans to send a floating base for commando teams to the Middle East, where relations with Iran are tense and other nations are in the midst of political upheaval.

The amphibious transport dock ship USS Ponce (LPD 15) departs Naval Station Norfolk for Pakistan to help provide relief to flood-stricken regions. Ponce is part of the Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group. The ship and the embarked units of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (26th MEU) are executing an early deployment to the region in support of ongoing humanitarian aid and disaster relief operations. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Brian Goodwin/Released)

The Washington Post newspaper on Saturday cited unspecified U.S. Navy documents saying the service plans to convert an aging warship into a staging base for the commandos, calling it a “mothership.”

A Navy spokesman declined to provide details on the plans or to say where in the Middle East the mothership would be deployed. The report says documents indicate the vessel could be positioned in the Persian Gulf, where Iran has threatened to block the critical oil-shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz.

Other Navy officials told the Post that the Pentagon hopes to complete the conversion and send the ship to the region later this year.

The newspaper report says the base is expected to accommodate smaller high-speed boats and helicopters often used by Navy SEALS for special operations.

On Thursday U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced plans for Pentagon budget cuts that would reduce ground forces and depend more on special forces operations in upcoming years. The plan also involves shifting focus from Europe to the Middle East and Asia Pacific regions.

Amphibious Transport Dock - LPD

Description

Amphibious transport dock ships are warships that embark, transport, and land elements of a landing force for a variety of expeditionary warfare missions.

Features

LPDs are used to transport and land Marines, their equipment and supplies by embarked air cushion (LCAC) or conventional landing craft and Expeditionary Fighting Vehicles (EFV) or Amphibious Assault Vehicles (AAV) augmented by helicopters or vertical take off and landing aircraft (MV 22). These ships support amphibious assault, special operations or expeditionary warfare missions and can serve as secondary aviation platforms for amphibious ready groups.

Background

The versatile Austin-class LPDs provide substantial amphibious lift for Marines and their vehicles and cargo. Additionally, they serve as the secondary aviation platform for Amphibous Ready Groups. The oldest of the class turned 43 this year. As the new San Antonio-class LPDs enter service, Austin-class LPDs will be decommissioned. The ships of the LPD 17 class are a key element of the Navy’s seabase transformation. Collectively, these ships functionally replace over 41 ships (LPD 4, LSD 36, LKA 113, and LST 1179 classes of amphibious ships) providing the Navy and Marine Corps with modern, seabased platforms that are networked, survivable, and built to operate with 21st century transformational platforms, such as the MV-22 Osprey, the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV), and future means by which Marines are delivered ashore. A contract for final design and construction of San Antonio (LPD 17), the lead ship in the class, was awarded in December 1996; actual construction commenced in August 2000. USS San Antonio was delivered to the Navy in July 2005. LPDs 18-21 have also been delivered to the Navy. New York is the first of three LPD 17-class ships built in honor of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The ship’s bow stem was constructed using 7.5 tons of steel salvaged from the World Trade Center. The Navy named the 8th and 9th ships of the class -- Arlington and Somerset -- in honor of the victims of the attacks on the Pentagon and United Flight 93, respectively. Arlington and Somerset are also incorporating materials salvaged from those sites. LPDs 22-26 are currently under construction at Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) on the Gulf Coast, and will deliver over the next few years. The Navy awarded a long lead time material contract to HII for LPD 27 in 2010.

General Characteristics, San Antonio class

Builder: Huntington Ingalls Industries (formerly Northrop Grumman Ships Systems), with Raytheon Systems Corporation and Intergraph Corporation.
Propulsion: Four sequentially turbocharged marine Colt-Pielstick Diesels, two shafts, 41,600 shaft horsepower.
Length: 684 feet (208.5 meters).
Beam: 105 feet (31.9 meters).
Displacement: Approximately 25,586 long tons (full load).
Speed: In excess of 22 knots
Crew: Ship's Company: 360 Sailors (28 officers, 332 enlisted) and 3 Marines.
Embarked Landing Force: 699 (66 officers, 633 enlisted); surge capacity to 800.
Armament: Two MK 46 Mod 2 guns, fore and aft; two Rolling Airframe Missile launchers, fore and aft: nine .50 calibre machine guns.
Aircraft: Launch or land two CH53E Super Stallion helicopters or two MV-22 Osprey tilt rotor aircraft or up to four CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters, AH-1 or UH-1 helicopters.
Landing/Attack Craft: Two LCACs or one LCU; and 14 Expeditionary Fighting Vehicles/Amphibious Assault Vehicles.

Ships:

USS San Antonio (LPD 17), Norfolk, VA
USS New Orleans (LPD 18), San Diego, CA
USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19), Norfolk, VA
USS Green Bay (LPD 20), San Diego, CA
USS New York (LPD 21), Norfok, VA
San Diego (LPD 22) - Christened June 12, 2010.
Anchorage (LPD 23), under construction - Christened May 14, 2011
Arlington (LPD 24), under construction - Christened March 26, 2011
Somerset (LPD 25), under construction
John P. Murtha (LPD 26) - under construction

General Characteristics, Austin class

Builder: LPD 4-6, New York Naval Shipyard
LPD 7 and LPD 8, Ingalls Shipbuilding
LPD 9, 10, 12-15, Lockheed Shipbuilding.

Date Deployed: Feb. 6, 1965 (USS Austin)
Unit Cost: $235-419 million.
Propulsion: Two boilers, two steam turbines, two shafts, 24,000 shaft horsepower.
Length: 570 feet (171 meters).
Beam: 84 feet (25.2 meters).
Displacement: Approximately 17,000 tons (17,272.82 metric tons) full load.
Speed: 21 knots (24.2 mph, 38.7 kph).
Crew: Ship's Company: 420 (24 officers, 396 enlisted), Marine Detachment: 900.
Armament: Two 25mm Mk 38 guns; two Phalanx CIWS; and eight .50-calibre machine guns.
Aircraft: Up to six CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters.

Ships:

USS Ogden (LPD 5), San Diego, CA
USS Cleveland (LPD 7), San Diego, CA
USS Denver (LPD 9), Sasebo, Japan
USS Juneau (LPD 10), San Diego, CA
USS Nashville (LPD 13), No homeport - decommissioned - Decommissioned Sept. 30, 2009
USS Ponce (LPD 15), Norfolk, VA
USS Dubuque (LPD 8), San Diego, CA