Supply Department works hard during replenishments-at-sea (RAS) to keep the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) mission-ready while underway for extended periods of time.

A RAS is comprised of a vertical replenishment (VERTREP), a connected replenishment (CONREP) or both. During a VERTREP, food, parts and supplies are loaded onto Lincoln from supply ships via MH-60S helicopters from the “Nightdippers” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 5. During a CONREP, lines are hooked up from the supply ships to Lincoln so fuel and supplies can be transferred between the ships via a pulley system.

Planning for a RAS begins up to two weeks in advance for Supply department. Each supply division first has to collect and submit their orders. This gives the naval supply ships, who report to Combat Logistics Fleet, the opportunity to acquire the supplies from different Navy-approved vendors.

Then, a week in advance, communication about executing the day of the RAS begins. Supply department informs the naval supply ships, and the government-employed civilian contractors working aboard, about the materials Lincoln plans to offload, plans to onload and the order in which Lincoln wants to receive the incoming materials.

“When you have good planning, you’re ready for things like missing a RAS,” said Logistics Specialist Master Chief La Dala. “Most of the supplies we receive during a RAS are sustainment fulfillments, things that we use on a daily basis. Through the RAS we get the parts we need to refill our storerooms to the levels that we need.”

To date, Lincoln has completed 11 RAS events since the start of deployment. Typically, Supply Sailors man up their stations about an hour prior to pulling alongside the naval supply ship. Conveyor belts have to be safety checked, working parties organized and plans approved for storage locations of all incoming supplies.

“People don’t realize the work we put in to do a RAS,” said Logistics Specialist 1st Class Dorian Walker, a member of Supply department.  “We’re up early, but we still have to operate as a department servicing the whole ship while we’re out there doing the RAS.”

A large portion of the materials received during a RAS is food stores. It is mandated by TYCOM that there be enough food aboard Lincoln to feed the crew for at least 45 days, which adds up quickly.

“We have to feed 5,000 people,” said Culinary Specialist 1st Class Antonio Granderson, a member of Supply Department. “The amount of food I take on is a lot, but we have to sustain for a long period of time. Every pallet I get is something everyone is going to eat.”

As the most recent RAS demonstrated, the size of the orders received has grown since deployment began because Lincoln missed several RAS’s after being redirected through the Suez Canal in early May. Between 600 and 700 pallets has become the new normal for an Abraham Lincoln RAS. An onload that large can take Lincoln anywhere from ten to fifteen hours from preparations to storage of the last box.

“We have an outstanding group of Sailors who go out there day in and day out, cooking in the galley 16 to 17 hours a day, manning Supply department around the clock and giving service to the whole ship to include all of the embarked units,” said Logistics Specialist Master Chief Keith Adams. “But nevertheless, every single week, no matter whether it’s 400, 500, 600 or 700 pallets, they continue to go out and rise to the occasion to bring supplies on safely and expeditiously.”

A RAS demonstrates the intricate interdepartmental cooperation aboard Lincoln. Though Supply runs lead on each RAS, they also rely on coordination with Navigation, Air, Deck and Weapons to ensure the evolution is executed.

This ability of a carrier strike group to replenish while underway enables unparalleled sustainment and endurance of the U.S. Navy.

Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of naval operations to ensure maritime stability and security in the Central Region, connecting the Mediterranean and the Pacific through the western Indian Ocean and three strategic choke points. With Abraham Lincoln as the flagship, deployed strike group assets include staffs, ships and aircraft of Carrier Strike Group 12 (CSG 12), Destroyer Squadron 2 (DESRON 2), USS Leyte Gulf (CG 55) and Carrier Air Wing 7 (CVW 7).

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