MV Capt Stephen L. Bennett (T-AK-4296)

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MV Bennett

Career
Delivered:	1984
Built by:	Samsung Heavy Industries, Koje, South Korea
Hull number:	1034^[1]
Original name:	TNT Express
Original owner:	TNT N.V.
IMO Number:	500123900
Homeport:	Diego Garcia
Status:	Active
General Characteristics
Gross Register Tons:	29,223
Displacement Tons:	53,727.26 tons^[2]
Deadweight Tons:	41,151^[1]
Length:	209.4 meters (687 ft), overall
Beam:	30.48 meters (100 ft)
Draft:	11.6 meters (38.1 ft)
Propulsion:	1 diesel; 1 shaft
Speed:	16.5 knots

The MV Capt Stephen L. Bennett (T-AK-4296) is the lead ship of the Bennett class container ship.^[3] Originally named the TNT Express, it was built at Samsung Heavy Industries in Koje, South Korea in 1984. MV Bennett is named after United States Air Force Medal of Honor recipient Captain Steven Logan Bennett. The ship is a Logistics Prepositioning Ship sponsored by the US Air Force.^[4]

1 Previous owners
2 Recent history
3 Ship specifics
- 3.1 Environmental control
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Previous owners

Bennett was built in 1984 as TNT Express and operated as such under charter by ABC Containerline N.V. of Antwerp, Belgium for the London-based company TNT N.V. until 1991. In 1991, ABC Containerline bought the ship and renamed it Martha II. On February 14, 1996, the ship was arrested^[5] in Melbourne, Australia when ABC went into recievership. Den norske Bank of Norway bought the ship later in 1996 and and renamed it Sea Pride. In 1997, the ship was bought by Sealift Inc. of the United States and on November 20, 1997 given its current name MV Capt Stephen L. Bennett. In the first quarter of 1998, Bennett began her prepositioning service under MPS Squadron One in the Mediterranean and as such became MV Capt Stephen L. Bennett (T-AK-4296). ^[4]

[edit] Recent history

In 2003, Bennett's crew were awarded the Merchant Marine Expeditionary Medal

MV Bennett started its Air Force Prepositioning Program career in the Mediterranean Sea, with a mission to "support the prepositioning requirements of the Department of Defense by transporting U.S. Air Force ammunition."^[6] The contract, awarded to owner and operator Sealift Incorporated, of Oyster Bay, New York was for $41,823,500 with "reimbursables that could bring the cumulative value of this contract to $47,400,000."^[6]

In 1999^[7], Bennett was involved in the NATO peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, where she "off-loaded more than two-thirds of her cargo of U.S. Air Force ammunition containers in Nordenham, Germany, which was distributed to the United Kingdom, Italy and other locations within Germany -- quickly replenishing the Air Force's stockpile in theater."^[8]

When the original contract expired in fiscal year 2002, MV Bennett "competed for and won a new five-year contract and redeployed to the Mediterranean in October."^[9] MV Bennett, as a ship carrying Air Force cargo, was used extensively during fiscal year 2002 to support Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and the global war on terrorism.^[9]

MV Bennett stays near Diego Garcia for months on end

Bennett had an eventful 2003. Still assigned to MPS Squadron One, she started the year in the Mediterranean.^[10] In April, she delivered cargo to the Persian Gulf and continued on to Diego Garcia. In July, she returned briefly to the United States, stopping en route in Northern Europe to drop off and load additional cargo.^[11] In late 2003, Vice Adm. David Brewer III, commander of Military Sealift Command, awarded the officers and crewmembers of the Bennett the Merchant Marine Expeditionary Medal.^[12]

Bennett spends much of its time at anchor in the lagoon of Diego Garcia^[13], and was spotted^[14] in New Orleans, Louisiana in early 2005.

[edit] Ship specifics

Bennett's features include cranes and advanced environmental controls

Bennett's side number, T-AK-4296, gives some information about it. The letter T indicates that it is "assigned to Commander, Military Sealift Command as a type commander."^[15] The letters "AK" are reserved for container ships.^[15] In fact, Bennett is actually a conbulker, a flexible design allowing it to carry both containerized and bulk cargo.^[16] ^[17] Fully loaded, it can carry 1,922 containers^[18]^[4]

The Bennett, like all MSC container ships is self-sustaining, meaning that it has cranes which allows it to move cargo without depending on shore-based equipment. This allows Bennet to fulfil its mission even in primitive, undeveloped or battle-damaged harbors."^[3]

[edit] Environmental control

As Bennett carries sensitive electronic cargoes in harsh environments for up to years at a time, it requires advanced environmental controls. The most obvious is the coccoon, or white fabric shell that covers the ship from holds number nine to three. All ships in the Bennett class "feature climate-controlled coccoons on their weather decks that allow them to carry approximately 50 percent more cargo, while protecting the additional cargo from the marine environment." ^[2]

In addition to the coccoon, Bennett uses Tidal Engineering Corporation's Control and Monitoring System (TECMS) which monitors and controls the cargo refrigeration and dehumidification controls, as well as provinding administrative reports. More information on the TECMS, including diagrams, is available at Tidal Engineering.