Posted on 08/12/2002 2:40:24 PM PDT by knighthawk
LONDON (Reuters) - The U.S. Navy is seeking to charter a large ship to carry military helicopters and ammunition from the United States to two ports in the Red Sea, shipping brokers have said.
The request follows a recent order for a vessel to carry military hardware from Europe to the Middle East Gulf, heightening speculation that the United States is pre-positioning equipment for a possible strike on Iraq.
In Washington, U.S. Navy spokesman Ensign David Luckett denied the Military Sealift Command had placed a request for a ship to carry helicopters and ammunition to the Red Sea.
"The U.S. Navy and the Military Sealift Command have no such request to charter a civilian vessel at this time," Luckett said on Monday.
Military Sealift Command, the agency responsible for shipping the bulk of equipment used during the 1991 Gulf War, asked for a roll-on-roll-off vessel to discharge at two ports in the Red Sea in late August, according to shipping brokers.
The command did not reveal which ports, but brokers and commercial shipping sources said it was most likely to be Saudi Arabia or Yemen.
"It's another big one -- 48,000 square feet of helicopters, ammo, and assorted rolling stock," said a shipping broker familiar with the U.S. military's tendering process.
An area of 48,000 square feet (4,459 sq metres) is roughly equivalent to a soccer field.
Roll-on-roll-off ships, and oil tankers to carry military jet fuel and marine diesel oil, will top the U.S. military's most wanted list of vessels if war breaks out.
Last week's request was for a similar ship to carry military supplies covering an area of 38,000 square feet. The heaviest pieces, at 50 tons each, were probably tanks and armoured vehicles, according to a shipping source who chartered vessels for the U.S. during the Gulf War.
That shipment was also for discharge in late August at an unspecified Gulf port.
MILITARY BUILD UP
Military and naval analysts have told Reuters there are tentative signs the United States has begun to move military supplies to the Gulf for some kind of operation against Iraq, although current movements are at nothing like the rate that would be needed to wage a full-scale war.
But there are indications from other quarters that the United States could be readying to shift more material.
Last week the U.S. Department of Defence awarded a massive contract to U.S.-based Maersk Line, part of Danish shipping giant Maersk Sealand, to run eight ships capable of carrying ammunition, tanks and ambulances.
The Pentagon said the ships will be positioned around the Diego Garcia military base in the Indian Ocean but must be deployable worldwide.
Maersk Line is the largest operator of ships in the U.S. Maritime Security Program -- a fleet that is called upon during war or times of crisis -- and participated in Operation Desert Storm.
The United States is also building its presence in the Gulf by transforming the Al Udeid air base in the tiny Gulf state of Qatar into a military command centre.
This is what we get for letting our own Merchant Marine go to hell.
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