The Navy is commissioning its first Expeditionary Landing Base as a warship yesterday for greater Navy operational flexibility, the service said.

The USNS Lewis B. Puller (T-ESB-3) Expeditionary Sea Base, initially operated by Military Sealift Command, will now be commissioned as the USS Lewis B. Puller (ESB-3) at a ceremony at Khalifa bin Salman Port in Al Hidd, Bahrain.

The USNS Lewis B. Puller, (T-ESB 3), the first Expeditionary Mobile Base in the formerly Mobile Landing Platform program. Photo: General Dynamics.
The USNS Lewis B. Puller, (T-ESB 3), the first Expeditionary Mobile Base in the formerly Mobile Landing Platform program. Photo: General Dynamics.

The Navy said it has a growing need to station more diverse and capable warships around the world as the security environment is becoming more complex and competitive. It also highlighted this commissioning will give combatant commanders more operational flexibility in how they use the ship in accordance with the laws of armed conflict.

“Redesignating USNS Lewis B. Puller as a commissioned warship will allow the Navy greater operational flexibility and provide critical support to TF 51/5’s joint forces at sea, from the sea and ashore to meet potential threats in the 5th Fleet area of operations,” the service said in a statement.

The Puller will replace the Afloat Forward Staging Base (Interim) (AFSB(I)) USS Ponce, which was able to stage personnel and equipment in support of maritime missions in the Fifth Fleet area of operations. The Puller will serve as the first ship specifically built to be an afloat expeditionary sea base.

The USNS Puller first left port at Naval Station Norfolk in July for its first operational deployment to the Fifth Fleet. (Defense Daily, July 14). The USS Puller will be commanded by Capt. Adam Cruz and crewed by both navy sailors and civilian mariners. The civilians will be led by ship’s Master, Captain Jonathan Olmsted.

Civilian mariners focus on ship operations like navigation and propulsion. The ESB-2 has a 52,000 square foot flight deck, repair spaces, fuel and equipment storage, magazines, and mission-planning space. It can accommodate up to 250 personnel and support missions like airborne mine countermeasures (AMCM), counter-piracy, maritime security operations, humanitarian aid and disaster relief, and crisis response.

A Navy Fact sheet says the Puller is T-ESB-3 and follow-on ships ESB-4 and ESB-5 are optimized to support maritime missions like Special Operations Forces and AMCM. They are designed around four main capabilities: aviation facilities, berthing, equipment staging support, and command and control assets.

The commissioning ceremony will feature addresses by Naval Forces Central Command/Fifth Fleet commander Vice. Adm. Kevin Donegan and the commander of Marine Forces Central Command Lt. Gen. William Beydler. Ship’s sponsor is Martha Downs, daughter of the ship’s namesake.

Lewis Puller was a distinguished Marine Corps veteran of World War II and the Korean War. Previously the USS Lewis B. Puller (FFG-32) an Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided missile frigate, was named after him from 1982-1998.

The Puller was initially built by General Dynamics [GD] NASSCO as part of the Mobile Landing Platform program with the USNS Montford Point and USNS John Glenn. The Puller was later reconfigured as an AFSB before delivery to the Navy in 2015 (Defense Daily, June 8, 2015).