U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy has announced that the Maritime Administration (MARAD) has signed 20 contracts totaling $6.2 billion to manage its Ready Reserve Force (RRF). The RRF, through MARAD, provides strategic sealift support for the rapid deployment of U.S. military forces and equipment during conflicts, crises, and emergencies.
“The Ready Reserve Force supports our military men and women and strengthens our supply chains,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy. “When our military is called to respond, the RRF delivers the tanks, the trucks, and the supplies. These ships don’t just support the mission—they are the linchpin that makes the mission possible. National security depends on strategic sealift, and strategic sealift depends on the RRF.”
“Our contracts with seven ship managers will ensure the fleet stays ready, reliable, and responsive,” said Acting Administrator of the Maritime Administration Sang Yi. “MARAD has a tremendous responsibility to maintain the RRF so that during critical military, humanitarian, and natural disaster operations, Americans can rely on these vessels for logistics support.”
The 51 RRF vessels referenced in the contracts include:
- roll-on/roll-off (RO/RO) vessels;
- auxiliary crane ships; and
- aviation maintenance vessels
Since its inception in 1976, the RRF has supported hundreds of missions, including annual military exercises and operations, as well as response efforts for emergency declarations. RRF provides nearly 100% of government-owned surge sealift.
The original announcement can be found here.