The US Navy took delivery of its final expeditionary sea base (ESB) in a ceremony in San Diego on Tuesday, August 25.
The 784-foot (239-metre) USNS Hector A. Cafferata Jr. is named in honour of US Marine Corps Private Hector A. Cafferata Jr., a Medal of Honor recipient recognised for his heroism at the Battle of Chosin during the Korean War.
The US Navy's ESBs are optimised to support a variety of maritime-based missions including: special operations forces support; airborne mine countermeasures; crisis response force sea basing; intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; and unmanned aviation systems support.
The ship features a four spot V-22-sized flight deck, a mission deck and hangar.
The vessel is designed around four core capabilities: aviation facilities, berthing, equipment staging support, and command and control assets.
Some ESBs have been given the USS prefix instead of USNS to indicate that they have been commissioned as US Navy warships with all-navy crews.
The navy said the re-designation allows for "greater mission flexibility" in accordance with international laws covering armed conflict.
Hector A. Cafferata Jr. was built by General Dynamics NASSCO.
