(from Stars and Stripes June 26, 2000)
BY RICK CHERNITZER
Stars and Stripes
USNS Kilauea, a U.S. Navy ammunition ship turned over to the Military Sealift Command 20 years ago, is leaving the 7th fleet in August.
The ship, based in Guam, will head for San Diego, where it will stay in port. A skeleton crew will keep it ready to go to sea.
The Kilauea was commissioned as a naval vessel Aug. 10, 1968. In 1980, the ship was transferred to MSC and run by a mostly civilian crew.
Kilauea was the first ammunition ship of its type to transfer to the MSC from the Navy. It normally has a crew of 125 civilians, plus 55 naval personnel, including a helicopter detachment.
The Kilauea’s mission was to supply bullets, bombs, missiles and other types of ordnance to ships of the 7th Fleet. In November, the Kilauea handed over responsibility for supplying the USS Kitty Hawk Battle Group to the USNS Flint. Another responsibility of the Kilauea was to move ordnance between Western Pacific shore stations, such as Guam, Okinawa, Chinhae, South Korea, and Sasebo, Japan.
“The Kilauea has acted as an integral part of the fleet for numerous exercises and has made (many) deployments to the North Arabian Sea and the Arabian Gulf,” said Jeffrey A. Cook, master of the Kilauea.
The last Gulf deployment was last spring to support the Kitty Hawk’s emergency deployment. The Kilauea also made an emergency deployment in September to support operations in East Timor.
For its efforts, the Kilauea has earned numerous awards over the years. In 1996, the ship was selected as the Commander 7th Fleet Logistics Unit of the Year, and the National Defense Transportation Association Naval Unit of the Year. The Kilauea has also received several awards from the United Seaman Service for at-sea rescues through the years.
While his ship may no longer keep Pacific fleet ships well stocked with ordnance, Cook will still have a chance to service ships in this part of the world. Next month, he will assume command of the USNS Kiska, which will replace the Flint as the supplier of ordnance to the fleet. This will allow the Flint to go into the shipyard for repairs.
“I am looking forward to assuming command of the Kiska, but she will have a very hard act to follow,” Cook said. “I can only hope that I can develop the same level of affection for the Kiska that I have for the Kilauea.”
Dale Hamilton contributed to this story.