The ''John Lewis'' class is a

class Class or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differentl ...

of fleet replenishment oilers which began construction in September 2018. The class will comprise twenty oilers which will be operated by Military Sealift Command to provide underway replenishment of fuel and limited amounts of dry cargo to

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

carrier strike group A carrier strike group (CSG) is a type of carrier battle group of the United States Navy. It is an operational formation composed of roughly 7,500 personnel, usually an aircraft carrier, at least one cruiser, a destroyer squadron of at least t ...

amphibious ready group An amphibious ready group (ARG) of the United States Navy consists of a naval element—a group of warships known as an Amphibious Task Force (ATF)—and a landing force (LF) of U.S. Marines (and occasionally U.S. Army soldiers), in total about ...

s, and other surface forces to allow them to operate worldwide.

Design

The ''John Lewis''-class ships are double-hulled and constructed to commercial standards and OPNAVINST 9070.1 requirements. They classed to

American Bureau of Shipping American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

steel vessel rules. The ships have capabilities similar to the s and rely on existing technology. The ships can carry 156,000 barrels of oil and have increased dry cargo storage over the ''Henry J. Kaiser'' class. There are stations on both sides of each ship for

underway replenishment Replenishment at sea (RAS) ( North Atlantic Treaty Organization/Commonwealth of Nations) or underway replenishment (UNREP) ( U.S. Navy) is a method of transferring fuel, munitions, and stores from one ship to another while under way. First devel ...

of fuel and stores, and will have two dry cargo transfer rigs. The ''John Lewis''-class ships have limited means of self-defense when delivered, including defenses against mines and

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...

es, and will be equipped with crew-served weapons which will be operated by embarked Navy Expeditionary Security Teams for limited self-defense ability against small boat attack. The ships have space, weight, and power reserved for additional self-defense systems, including

close-in weapon system A close-in weapon system (CIWS ) is a point-defense weapon system for detecting and destroying short-range incoming missiles and enemy aircraft which have penetrated the outer defenses, typically mounted on a naval ship. Nearly all classes of ...

s (CIWS) or SeaRAM, and an anti-torpedo torpedo defense system. Even with additional self-defense systems installed the ships will still require escort if operating in a higher threat environment.

History

On 30 June 2016, General Dynamics

National Steel and Shipbuilding Company National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, commonly referred to as NASSCO, is an American shipbuilding company with three shipyards located in San Diego, Norfolk and Mayport. It is a division of General Dynamics. The San Diego shipyard specializes ...

(NASSCO) was awarded detailed design and construction for six ''John Lewis''-class replenishment oilers. NASSCO began construction on ''John Lewis'' on 20 September 2018, and began construction on ''Harvey Milk'' on 3 September 2020. In January 2020 it was announced the lead ship delivery estimate had been delayed from November 2020 until June 2021 due to delays in delivery of gear and flooding of a graving dock.

Naming

The class is named for its

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very complex and may ...

, ''John Lewis'', which in turn is named for

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

politician and civil rights leader

John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...

. The remaining ''John Lewis''-class oilers will be named after prominent civil rights leaders and activists.

Ships

References

{{John Lewis-class oiler Auxiliary replenishment ship classes Ships of the United States Navy