The Cargo Afloat Rig Team: the backbone of the U.S Navy

Photo By Elisha Smith | 220715-N-MR124-1030 PEARL HARBOR (July 15, 2022) Gas Turbine System Technician Mechanical 1st Class Kelly Novesteras, from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, assigned to the Cargo Afloat Rig Team aboard Henry J. Kaiser-class underway replenishment oiler USNS Pecos (T-AO 197) signals Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2) for a replenishment-at-sea during the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2022, July 15. Twenty-six nations, 38 ships, four submarines, more than 170 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC from June 29 to Aug. 4 in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California. The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2022 is the 28th exercise in the series that began in 1971. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Elisha Smith)  

PACIFIC OCEAN

07.22.2022

Story by Petty Officer 3rd Class Elisha Smith 

Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet           

PACIFIC OCEAN – During the pandemic, when nearly half the U.S. workforce was out of commission, the Cargo Afloat Rig Teams (CART) helped the U.S. Navy continue operations and stay mission ready.

CART is a group of about 200 Navy reservists specializing in seamanship skills needed for replenishments-at-sea. CART Sailors embark aboard Military Sealift Command (MSC) commercial oilers and provide support to the crew by delivering fuel, ammunition, and stores to U.S. Navy warships.

Senior Chief Boatswain’s Mate Joseph Hardin said the Sailors went above and beyond their primary mission of underway replenishment and played a huge role in helping MSC fill the gaps in its primary crew, which was short-handed during the pandemic. Hardin is the leading chief petty officer for the CART detachment aboard Henry J. Kaiser-class underway-replenishment oiler USNS Pecos (T-AO 197) during the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2022.

“We boarded these ships that were down on manpower and we assisted with deck operations from small-boat operations, to unreps (underway replenishments), to deck watches, to sea and anchor, and even to tank cleaning,” said Hardin, a native of Charleston, South Carolina. “We fell in with the deck department and assisted where they needed us.”

CART members come from all over the world, playing their part in keeping the U.S. Navy in the fight.

“I’m learning new things entirely that I never believed I could learn,” said Engineman 3rd Class Kehinde Kupolati, a native of Ikeja, Lagos, about his first time on a CART mission. “If you want to get exposed to how the Navy life works - going on deployment, being on ships and all that - CART is going to give you that platform.”

Hardin also said although CART members are a lesser-known part of operations, this unique, diverse team is essential in keeping seaways open and safe for commerce.

“We have guys from California and all the way from Cameroon and Nigeria, Africa,” said Hardin. “We have teachers, police, and firemen, and they all are capable of mobilizing and coming to the fleet to provide support at a moment’s notice. I think having that capability in your back pocket is an advantage to the Navy and the Navy reserves.”

• Date Taken: 07.22.2022
• Date Posted: 07.29.2022 00:28
• Story ID: 425661
• Location: PACIFIC OCEAN