USNS Balboa

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USNS Spearhead (JHSV-1) - 1.jpg
USNS Spearhead, the lead ship of the class. Balboa will likely be marked the same as a hospital ship, with the hull and superstructure painted all white, and bearing large red crosses. [1]
History
Flag of the United States.svgUnited States
NameBalboa
Namesake Naval Medical Center San Diego, also known informally "Balboa Naval Hospital" [2]
Operator United States Navy 's Military Sealift Command [2]
Builder Austal USA [2]
Sponsored byDeborah Paxton
Identification Hull number: T-EMS-2
StatusAnnounced [2]
General characteristics
Class and type Bethesda-class Expeditionary Medical Ship
Length118.0 m (387 ft 2 in)
Beam28.5 m (93 ft 6 in)
Draft4.5 m (14 ft 9 in)
Propulsion
Speed43 knots (80 km/h; 49 mph)
Troops312
CrewCapacity of 41, 22 in normal service
Aviation facilitiesLanding pad for medium helicopter

USNS Balboa (T-EMS-2) will be the eighteenth overall Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, and second of the Bethesda-class Expeditionary Medical Ship. She will be operated by the United States Navy 's Military Sealift Command.

On 27 October 2023, Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro announced that the ship would be named after Naval Medical Center San Diego (NMCSD), which is informally known as "Balboa Naval Hospital", to "honor the legacy and commitment of Navy doctors, nurses, corpsmen, and staff of Balboa Naval Hospital in caring for the needs of U.S. Service Members". The name dates back more than a hundred years, when a naval medical tent was first erected in the middle of San Diego's Balboa Park (on the site of the present day NMCSD), for the Panama-California Exposition in 1915. Also announced was ship sponsor Deborah Paxton, RN, MSN, wife of General John Paxton, the 33rd Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps. [2]

Expeditionary Medical Ship

Beginning with EPF-14, the ships will be designated as EPF Flight II, with increased health services capabilities while still maintaining most of the original mission of the ship. [3] The Flight II variant is designed to bring enhanced medical capabilities at the request of Combatant Commanders, and allows patients to recover onboard rather than in a higher-level facility. They can respond faster, and to more places than the Navy's larger, slower and unarmed hospital ships. [3] [4] The EPF Flight II design includes upgrades to the medical facilities for resuscitation and surgery, enhanced support of V-22 flight operations, and enhanced launch and recovery of 11-meter rigid inflatable boats. [5]

In January 2023, the Navy announced that three Expeditionary Medical Ships (EMS) had been approved in the 2023 military budget. These will be T-EMS-1, T-EMS-2, and T-EMS-3. These are planned to be about 118m versus the earlier ships 103 metres (338 ft), and have a draft of 4.5 metres (15 ft) for operations in "austere ports". The EMS will have four operating rooms and 124 medical beds, separated into acute care, acute isolation, ICU, and ICU isolation spaces. [6] Two 11-meter rigid-hulled inflatable boats allow for the transfer of patients from other ships or water rescue; the flight deck has room for a single V-22, or an H-53 or H-60 helicopter. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austal</span> Australian defence company

Austal Limited is an Australian-based global ship building company and defence prime contractor that specialises in the design, construction and support of defence and commercial vessels. Austal's product range includes naval vessels, high-speed ferries, and supply or crew transfer vessels for offshore windfarms and oil and gas platforms.

<i>Spearhead</i>-class expeditionary fast transport US navy catamaran

The Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport (EPF) is a United States Navy–led shipbuilding program to provide a high-speed, shallow draft vessel intended for rapid intra-theater transport of medium-sized cargo payloads. The EPFs can reach speeds of 35–45 knots, and allow the rapid transit and deployment of conventional or special forces, equipment and supplies.

USNS <i>Fall River</i>

USNS Fall River (JHSV-4/T-EPF-4) is the fourth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, which is operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command (MSC). Fall River was built by Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama.

USNS <i>Spearhead</i>

USNS Spearhead (JHSV-1/T-EPF-1) is the lead ship of the Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport to be operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. USNS Spearhead was christened on 17 September 2011.

USNS <i>Millinocket</i>

USNS Millinocket (JHSV-3/T-EPF-3)(ex-Fortitude) is the third Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, which is operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command and was built in Mobile, Alabama.

USNS <i>Trenton</i>

USNS Trenton (JHSV-5/T-EPF-5), (ex-Resolute) is the fifth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. Spearhead-class ships are used to support overseas operations, conduct humanitarian aid and disaster relief, and support special operations forces. This type of vessel also has an aviation flight deck and can operate in shallow waters.

USNS <i>Brunswick</i> Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Brunswick (JHVS-6/T-EPF-6), is the sixth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, currently in service with the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. It is the fourth ship in naval service named after Brunswick, Georgia. Brunswick is one of three expeditionary fast transport ships in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to continue its mission of providing rapid intra-theater transport of troops and military equipment. Like other EPFs of its class, the Brunswick is capable of carrying up to 600 short tons of equipment for distances of 1,200 nautical miles at an average speed of 35 knots.

USNS <i>Choctaw County</i> Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Choctaw County (JHSV-2/T-EPF-2), (ex-Vigilant) is the second Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, which is operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command and was built in Mobile, Alabama.

USNS <i>Carson City</i> Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Carson City (JHSV-7/T-EPF-7), (ex-Courageous) is the seventh Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, currently in service with the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. She is the second ship in naval service named after Carson City, Nevada.

USNS <i>Yuma</i> (T-EPF-8) Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Yuma (T-EPF-8) is the eighth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport and operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. It is the fourth ship in naval service named after Yuma, Arizona.

USNS <i>City of Bismarck</i> Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS City of Bismarck (JHSV-9/T-EPF-9), (ex-Sacrifice) is the ninth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport and operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. It is the first ship in naval service named after Bismarck, North Dakota’s capital city.

USNS <i>Burlington</i> Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Burlington (T-EPF-10) is the tenth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport and operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. It is the first ship in naval service named after Burlington, Vermont’s largest city.

USNS <i>Puerto Rico</i> (T-EPF-11) Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Puerto Rico (T-EPF-11) is the eleventh Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport and currently in service with the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command.

USNS <i>Newport</i> Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Newport (T-EPF-12) is the twelfth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport and is operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. It is the fourth ship in naval service named after Newport, Rhode Island.

USNS <i>Apalachicola</i> Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Apalachicola (T-EPF-13) is the thirteenth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport and operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. It is the second ship in naval service named after Apalachicola, Florida.

USNS <i>Cody</i> Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Cody (T-EPF-14) will be the fourteenth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport and will be operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. She will be the first ship in naval service named after Cody, Wyoming, and the first of the Flight II variant designed to have enhanced medical capabilities.

USNS <i>Point Loma</i> (T-EPF-15) Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport

USNS Point Loma (T-EPF-15) will be the fifteenth Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. On 16 July 2021, acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Harker announced that she would be named after Point Loma, San Diego. This is the second ship named after Point Loma, with the first being USS Point Loma (AGDS-2), a Deep Submergence Support Ship

USNS <i>Bethesda</i> US Navy vessel

USNS Bethesda (T-EMS-1) will be the seventeenth overall Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport, and first of her Expeditionary Medical Ship class, operated by the United States Navy's Military Sealift Command. On 15 May 2023, Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro announced that the ship would be named after the Bethesda Medical Center, now part of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, in Bethesda, Maryland. She will be the first ship in the US Navy to carry the name.

References

  1. ↑ "SECNAV Names Navy's First-in-Class Expeditionary Medical Ship after National Naval Medical Center Bethesda" (Press release). United States Navy. 15 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "SECNAV Del Toro Names Future Medical Ship USNS Balboa (EMS 2)". Navy Medicine (Press release). 6 November 2023. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  3. 1 2 "New Details of Austals EPF Hospital Ship Emerge". 5 March 2021.
  4. ↑ "Speedy 'Ambulance Ships' a High Priority for Navy Medicine, Admiral Says". military.com. 21 April 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  5. ↑ "Austal USA Engineering Team Recognized by Mobile Area Council of Engineers" (Press release). Austal USA. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  6. ↑ Staff, Naval News (2023-05-13). "SECNAV Names US Navy's First-in-Class Expeditionary Medical Ship". Naval News. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  7. ↑ "These Speedy New Navy Medical Ships Are Designed with the Pacific in Mind". military.com. 17 January 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
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