Military Sealift Command to conduct sea-basing exercise off Liberia

The U.S. Military Sealift Command will conduct a sea-basing exercise off the coast of Monrovia, Liberia in late March.

The command's vessels 2nd Lt. John P. Bobo and LCPL Roy M. Wheat arrived in the Gulf of Guinea on March 20. The U.S. Navy cargo ships are part of the Maritime Prepositioning Ship Squadron One, one of three squadrons that provide rapid delivery to shore in response to military or humanitarian crises throughout the world. 

The Military Sealift Command vessels join the exercise with the Africa Partnership Station, a U.S. Naval Forces Europe initiative that provides maritime training to partner countries in West and Central Africa aboard U.S. Navy ships operating in the region.

During the exercise, sailors from the vessels Bobo, Wheat, Swift and Fort McHenry will assemble a ighterage operation, which uses a roll-on/roll-off discharge platform comprised of barges and ferries that allow ships to off-load cargo at sea and deliver it ashore when traditional harbor facilities are unavailable. The supplies from this exercise will be delivered to a number of schools and medical clinics in Liberia, the Military Sealift Command said.