USS Bataan is comign in tomorrow wiht a lot of capacity

[nadinbrzezinski]

per MSNBC... and now we have thousands of troops on the ground, plus all other national groups.

[stray cat]

1. Thats the huge hospital ship right?

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. No that is a Landing Craft, but has quite a bit of

hospital capacity. They are bringing the earth movers too... and yet more choppers to join the international flotilla

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Bataan_%28LHD-5%29

[stray cat]

4. thanks for the details!

:hi:

[Captain Hilts]

5. I'm surprised, without the huge number of flight crew that VINSON doesn't have a significant

sickbay working.

[nadinbrzezinski]

8. They are... they covered that yesterday in passing

it is just that some of this you got to assume... too much info.

[Captain Hilts]

10. I'm glad to read this. I've actually been in the sickbay and some berthing of VINSON. nt

[cali]

25. That is incorrect. The Vinson has treated a grand total of 9 earthquake victims

and two of them were Americans. The sick bay on the Vincent is virtually empty and large medical corps aboard is largely idle.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703959804575008133093161008.html?mod=WSJ_World_MIDDLENews

[me b zola]

37. And IIRC, the ability to create 100,000 gallons of potable water/day

At least that is what I recall the newspaper saying about the Bataan when it sat off the coast of NOLA but was not allowed to be utilized.

[Captain Hilts]

3. USNS MERCY is the hospital ship. It left Baltimore yesterday morning. nt

[stray cat]

6. Thanks for the details - I was hoping it was getting their early

but I had the wrong ship

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. The Comfort, not hte Mercy, will be there by Monday

it left port yesterday.

It takes about four days to get from her home port to station. And it took seventy two hours to ready her for deployment... (and that was fast actually)

[Captain Hilts]

11. It usually takes 5 days. They did it in three. nt

[cali]

33. The Comfort will not be there Monday. Per Southern Command

it will arrive on Wednesday the 20th.

The hospital ship USNS Comfort departed Baltimore, Md., Jan. 16 with approximately 600 medical personnel and is projected to arrive in Haitian waters Jan. 20. Comfort's capabilities include fully-equipped operating rooms, a 1,000-bed hospital facility, digital radiological services, a medical laboratory, a pharmacy, an optometry lab, a CAT-scan and two oxygen producing plants. Each ship is equipped with a helicopter deck capable of landing large military helicopters.

http://www.dvidshub.net/?script=news/news_show.php&id=44017

[Statistical]

7. The Bataan is an amphibious assault ship.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Bataan_%28LHD-5%29

The most useful aspects in the Haiti issue is
a) large number of helicopters
b) smaller amphibious landing craft which could reached Haiti despite port being damaged.

[backscatter712]

16. Yes. The beach-landing craft.

They've got the roll-on-roll-off landing craft, and they've got the LCAC hovercraft - they, along with the choppers, will be handy for moving aid supplies.

[westerebus]

12. Amphibious assault ship.

She has a hospital, more like a trauma center. She has a command and control capability which provides communication and information to the boots on the ground.

[BeFree]

13. The US

Will be seen as Angels coming to the rescue.

That's a good thing, eh?

[nadinbrzezinski]

14. If it makes you feel better

the MAR Huasteco will beat the Comfort by 24 hours... and the MAR Papaloapan will reach station in about five days.

If it makes you feel better, when you look a the sizes of both militaries, their economies and population sizes... it's about the same amount we are sending.

There is this thing about we having such a large military budget... and having such a large armed force. So yes, the US will end up providing about twice as all other nations combined.

What you expect Belgium to send a Carrier Battle Group? They don't have a Carrier.

[alsame]

15. Is this the ship that will have the crew and equipment needed to

repair the port? I heard that was on its way too.

[backscatter712]

17. No, the Bataan's an amphibious assault ship.

She's almost as big as an aircraft carrier, has dozens of choppers on board, as well as beach-landing craft including the roll-on-roll-off landing craft and the LCAC hovercraft - they'll be very handy for moving supplies.

IIRC, she's also got a hospital onboard, as well as a desalination plant for making drinking water.

I imagine the Navy's sending some salvage ships and ships with divers to work on repairing the port. They'll probably have to repair the piers and such, and they'll have to dredge the harbor so ships don't hit underwater obstacles.

The USNS Comfort's also on the way - a big hospital ship.

[alsame]

19. Thanks. nt

[Statistical]

18. I can't confirm that but it seems likely.

The purpose of amphibious assualt ship in wartime is to land troops (Marines), tanks, and other heavy equipment onto beaches.

The ship has large staging areas, lots of troops (1800+ Marines) and 37 helicopters and other aircraft. It can flood a portion of the ship to launch 3 large landing craft and dozens of smaller ones. It seems likely a ship like this would be chosen for a task like rebuilding a port.



It can land workers & equipment right into port area without needing to use damaged docks and has the equipment to accomplish heavy construction as well as the troops to protect the port.

A side note the Bataan was in the Gulf when Katrina hit. It was one of the first ships to arrive and her Search & Rescue helicopters were one of the first to begin lifting stranded citizens in New Orleans.

[alsame]

20. Thanks - I don't know much about the various naval ships, but I'm

learning quite a lot on DU!

[nadinbrzezinski]

21. That is comming wiht the 22nd MEU

and they are expected I think on Monday.

[alsame]

22. Thank you - your threads have been extremely

informative throughout this tragedy.

[nadinbrzezinski]

27. You welcome

[NutmegYankee]

23. I believe the ship you are looking for is the USNS Grasp.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USNS_Grasp_(T-ARS-51)

The U.S. Navy is sending the salvage ship Grasp and underwater-construction personnel to Port-au-Prince to help get the port operating, the Associated Press reported. The Navy will help build temporary piers and other facilities, Rear Admiral Victor G. Guillory said yesterday.

[alsame]

26. That's it! I couldn't remember the name of the ship. Thanks. nt

[NutmegYankee]

31. Your welcome. nt

[Electric Monk]

24. When I hear Bataan I can't help but think "death march"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bataan_Death_March

[Statistical]

28. That is what the ship is named after.

It was "never forget" type of thing.

The first Bataan was the USS Bufallo a light carrier which was renamed in 1942 when US learned of the atrocities in Bataan.
The current Bataan carries on the name after the carrier was removed from service.

At dawn on 9 April, and against the orders of Generals Douglas MacArthur and Jonathan Wainwright, Major General Edward P. King, Jr., commanding Luzon Force, Bataan, Philippine Islands, surrendered more than 75,000 (67,000 Filipinos, 1,000 Chinese Filipinos, and 11,796 Americans) starving and disease-ridden men. He inquired of Colonel Motoo Nakayama, the Japanese colonel to whom he tendered his pistol in lieu of his lost sword, whether the Americans and Filipinos would be well treated. The Japanese aide-de-camp replied: “We are not barbarians.” The majority of the prisoners of war were immediately robbed of their keepsakes and belongings and subsequently forced to endure a 61-mile (98 km) march in deep dust, over vehicle-broken macadam roads, and crammed into rail cars to captivity at Camp O’Donnell. Thousands died en route from disease, starvation, dehydration, heat prostration, untreated wounds, and wanton execution.

Those few who were lucky enough to travel to San Fernando on trucks still had to endure more than 25 miles of marching. Prisoners were beaten randomly, and were often denied food and water. Those who fell behind were usually executed or left to die. Witnesses say those who broke rank for a drink of water were executed, some even decapitated. Subsequently, the sides of the roads became littered with dead bodies and those begging for help.

On the Bataan Death March, approximately 54,000 of the 75,000 prisoners reached their destination. The death toll of the march is difficult to assess as thousands of captives were able to escape from their guards. All told, approximately 5,000–10,000 Filipino and 600–650 American prisoners of war died before they could reach Camp O'Donnell.

[backscatter712]

29. USS Bataan was named after the US defense of the Bataan Peninsula in the early days of WWII.

And yes, the name was also chosen to honor those who died in the death march.

[nadinbrzezinski]

30. Becuase she was named to honor the dead of that march

:-)

[freddie mertz]

32. This is a very capable ship.

The landing craft can go right to the shore, don't need a harbor.

Also lots of helicopters and troops aboard.

Glad it's finally underway.

[backscatter712]

34. The other ships in Bataan's Amphibious Assault Group are enroute as well.

http://hamptonroads.com/2010/01/navy-divers-will-deploy-repair-haiti-capitals-port

They would be the Fort McHenry and the Gunston Hall, which will be carrying more Marines, and more LCACs and landing craft.

[The Straight Story]

35. Why so slow? Couldn't they use teleporters or tractor beams to get their more quickly?

Damned evil engineers making ships that can only go so fast.

That's the evil of america.... :evilgrin:

[nadinbrzezinski]

38. Pixie dust, I want to know where hte Pixie dust is hidden

:hi:

[Dappleganger]

36. Excellent news and info, K&R nt