A Time To Consider Alternative Sources of Quick-Response Sealift Capacity

In the event of hostilities, the Department of Defense (DOD) must be ready to ship hundreds of thousands of tons of military equipment, supplies, and subsistence items to overseas locations. Many commodities shipped are unsuitable for transporting in modern containerships, and many ports lack the sophisticated facilities needed to accommodate these containerships. Self-sufficient ships, with cranes and cargo handling equipment, are needed. However, the maritime industry is retiring most of these older self-contained ships and replacing them with with containerships which cannot be unloaded at many strategic ports. In order to fill this gap, some self-contained ships are being maintained in a reduced operational status at a unnecessarily high cost to DOD.