WASHINGTON (USTCNS) --- A new addition has joined the Military Sealift Command fleet. USNS Pomeroy delivered to the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command on Wed., Aug. 14. Pomeroy is the seventh ship completed of eight Watson-class large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ships being built at National Steel and Shipbuilding Company in San Diego, Calif.

At 950-feet long and 105-feet wide, the gray-hulled ship is only about 100-feet shy of an aircraft carrier. From Pomeroy's deck, her crew of 30 civilian mariners will actually be able to look down on the deck of an aircraft carrier.

The LMSR has 380,000 square feet of cargo capacity, which will be loaded with tanks, vehicles and other U.S. Army equipment in mid December. Pomeroy will then depart the United States for Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean where she will spend about 30 months on station prepositioning her Army cargo.

Pomeroy will join five LMSRs currently prepositioning Army cargo in the Indian Ocean. An additional nine LMSRs are maintained stateside, ready to be activated within four days to sealift equipment and supplies anywhere around the world.

One more LMSR will deliver to Military Sealift Command's Prepositioning Program and two more to MSC's Sealift Program by Fall 2002.

MSC is the ocean transportation provider for the Department of Defense-operating about 110 ships daily around the world. MSC ships preposition military cargo near potential hotspots around the globe, sealift military equipment and supplies in peacetime and war, provide food, fuel and supplies to Navy ships at sea and perform special missions such as charting the world's oceans.

For a photo of USNS Pomeroy and for more information about MSC, see the command website at www.msc.navy.mil. (FROM MILITARY SEALIFT COMMAND PUBLIC AFFAIRS)