HMS Illustrious took a short break from delivering humanitarian aid in the Philippines. “Lusty” met up with the US tanker USNS Richard E Byrd in the Sulu Sea just to the west of the central Philippines island of Panay to top up fuel. During the three hour encounter, around 1200 cubic metres of fuel was transferred to Lusty to top up her fuel tanks.
The fuel transferred should allow “Lusty” to steam for around 3000 nautical miles and represents less than one third of the capacity of the amphibious helicopter carrier’s enormous fuel tanks.
Lusty also carries substantial quantities of aviation fuel to service the needs of her embarked carrier air group.
Lusty’s Navigation Officer is Lieutenant Commander Ritchie Hewitt. He said:
“We have done a lot of work with the US Navy over the course of this year. During Cougar 13, we repeatedly proved our ability to interoperate with US Marine Expeditionary Units and Carrier Battle Groups.
“We have also replenished a number times from US tankers. Activities like this not only prove that our equipment and procedures work, but demonstrate the close working relationships that we have with our allies.
“This is the sort of thing that we do on a day to day basis as a globally deployable navy.”
USNS Richard E. Byrd (T-AKE-4) is a Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship. She is the second United States Navy ship to be named after polar explorer Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd (1888–1957).
Completed in 2007 USNS Byrd joined the Pacific Fleet and predominantly operates in the Far East and Indian Ocean. She is 210 metres in overall length and displaces over 40000 tonnes at full load.
HMS Illustrious has returned to the island clusters around the central Philippine Island of Panay to assess needs and continue providing vital assistance to local communities.
[mappress] Press Release, December 11, 2013; Image: Royal Navy