U.S. NAVY’S MILITARY SEALIFT COMMAND MARKS 50 YEARS OF SERVICE
The U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command marks 50 years of service as a
transportation provider to the Defense Department on Oct. 1.
Established in 1949, the Military Sea Transportation Service provided
at-sea support and transportation to the Navy and Defense Department
missions ranging from transport of weapons and troops to Korea and Vietnam to supporting
deep ocean surveys and the Apollo 11 moon mission. The command was renamed the Military
Sealift Command in 1970.
Today, MSC operates about 120 ships worldwide. The command’s newest ships,
(large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ships or LMSRs) are almost as large as aircraft
carriers. Almost 95 percent of all cargo needed for military operations travels via MSC.
More than 30 percent of U.S. merchant seamen are also employed on these ships.
MSC most recently supported military operations in the Persian Gulf,
Somalia, Haiti and Kosovo and humanitarian efforts after Hurricane Mitch and the
earthquake in Turkey.