The American Roll-On/Roll-Off Carrier Group (ARC) confirmed late last week that the pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) ARC Freedom has joined its US-flag fleet and will operate under the Maritime Security Program (MSP).
Built in 2011 and previously named Figaro, the PCTC can carry nearly 8,000 CEUs on 13 vehicle decks. Five decks can be raised to accommodate cargo of different sizes.
The main deck door is 6.5 metres high, and the stern ramp can handle rolling cargo weighing up to 320 tonnes. ARC listed project cargo, heavy equipment, trucks and automobiles among the vessel’s potential loads.
ARC also said ARC Freedom can transport military cargo such as V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft and CH-47 helicopters. Under the MSP, it will operate commercially while remaining available for US military sealift requirements.
Eric Ebeling, ARC’s president and CEO, said the vessel will be, “serving [the company’s] customers in peacetime and standing ready to serve [the] nation when called.”
The US Maritime Administration has described the MSP as a fleet of commercially active, militarily useful US-registered ships available for US Department of Defense (DOD) sustainment sealift during conflicts or national emergencies. The program also gives the DOD access to participating operators’ intermodal networks and US citizen merchant mariners.
The American Maritime Officers union said ARC Freedom was reflagged to the US registry in September. ARC’s US-flag fleet now comprises 10 vessels with military utility, each enrolled in the MSP, the union said.
On August 24, US Transportation Command awarded ARC and six other commercial shipping companies a joint charter for global sealift. The contract covers short-term dry cargo time and voyage services, with task orders issued as needed for strategic sealift missions.
ARC reflagged two other car carriers, ARC Commitment and ARC Defender, to the US registry and enrolled them in the MSP in December 2021 and January 2022, respectively.
