SASEBO, Japan -- The forward-deployed amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay (LPD 20) departed Sasebo, Japan for a routine patrol in the Indo-Pacific region, March 12.
Green Bay will join the USS Wasp (LHD 1) Expeditionary Strike Group as part of a routine patrol in the Indo-Pacific region. The ship is scheduled to receive ammunition before continuing on with its patrol and embarking Marines of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU).
Green Bay and other Sasebo-based amphibious ships regularly integrate with the 31st MEU to ensure Navy-Marine Corps interoperability and readiness for any type of contingency in the region.
“The entire crew is looking forward to operating again with the 31st MEU and our partners in the region. The consistent training that we conduct enables us to always be ready to respond when needed,” says Capt. Tom Shultz, Green Bay Commanding Officer.
Green Bay, the Navy’s only forward-deployed amphibious transport dock, ship recently completed a five-month selective restricted availability (SRA) maintenance period that began after returning from a multi-month deployment to Australia in September 2017.
Through the maintenance period the crew has been conducting a series of training inspections and assessments from engineering to seamanship. Just prior to getting underway, the ship completed a certification in visit, board, search and seizure, an important mission area in the event Green Bay is tasked to conduct a maritime interdiction operation (MIO).
“The maintenance we recently completed ensures the ship will be ready for years to come, and the training we accomplished prior to departure ensures that each and every Sailor onboard Green Bay is ready to safely and effectively carry out our operational requirements,” said Shultz.
Senior leaders of Green Bay expressed pride in the crew’s ability to simultaneously work through a maintenance period and train for patrol.
“Even though we weren’t out to sea, we continued to sharpen our technical skills, working together as a team and capitalizing on training and mission readiness,” said Green Bay’s Command Master Chief David Robinson. Robinson. “The team is motivated; the ship looks good standing tall and ready to fulfill our mission,”
Seventh Fleet, which is celebrating its 75th year in 2018, spans more than 124 million square kilometers, stretching from the International Date Line to the India/Pakistan border; and from the Kuril Islands in the North to the Antarctic in the South. Seventh Fleet's area of operation encompasses 36 maritime countries and 50 percent of the world’s population with between 50-70 U.S. ships and submarines, 140 aircraft, and approximately 20,000 Sailors in the 7th Fleet.