171014-N-VC599-068 NORFOLK (Oct. 14, 2017) Lt. Michael Murmuys carries the last flag flown aboard afloat forward staging base (interim) USS Ponce (AFSB(I) 15) during the ship’s decommissioning ceremony. The ship, commissioned in 1971, was the 12th and last ship in the Austin-class of amphibious transport dock ships. After being forward deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operation for the past five years, the “Proud Lion” returned to her homeport in September for decommissioning and dismantling. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Justin Wolpert/Released)
Named for the Puerto Rican city of the same name, Ponce served mostly in the Atlantic Fleet, completing 27 deployments in the North Atlantic, Caribbean, Mediterranean, Indian Ocean and Arabian Gulf.
Originally slated for decommissioning in 2011, the “Proud Lion” was refitted and reclassified, based on the USS Kitty Hawk’s (CV 63) role as an afloat special operation staging base during Operation Enduring Freedom in 2001. And, she was outfitted with a joint Navy – Military Sealift Command (MSC) crew.
Forward deployed for the past five years, the crew provided vital support to U.S. and allied forces in the U.S. 5th Fleet and Central Command, primarily during mine countermeasures operations, but also in international maritime command and control roles. In doing so, the crew launched, recovered and sustained multiple aircraft, riverine and other vessels. Their actions led to the ship and its crew being awarded the Combat Action Ribbon.
All points Falklands?
Contrary to some reports that had her going to Argentina, which caused heartburn in London, the 46-year-old Ponce now joins the inactive fleet and will be dismantled.
Why was that such a big deal?
During the 1982 Falklands Islands War, the Argentine Navy used three new 10,000-ton Costa Sur-class light cargo ships and a 7,800-ton LST (ARA Cabo San Antonio) to invade the islands, with the latter transporting a mixed battalion of two Marine companies, an Army infantry unit, and 20 LVTP7 Amtracs in the initial attack and the cargo ships landing follow-on supplies to bolster the division-sized garrison.
However, Cabo San Antonio was retired in 1997, leaving just the three cargo ships.
One of the trio, Bahia San Blas, has been converted since then to something akin to the amphibious cargo ships used in island hopping during WWII, and has carried Argentine Army troops to Haiti and the former Yugoslavia on UN peacekeeping missions.
Bahia San Blas, note the 1940s surplus LCVPs on deck. She carries four, each of which are good for a light platoon. Current British garrison in the Falklands as part of British Forces South Atlantic Islands (BFSAI) is around 1,200
However, while Bahia San Blas can carry a couple hundred sea sick guys in sleeping bags, four LCVP’s on deck (or the Argentine Marine’s aging Amtracs) and containerized cargo, she lacks a drywell for larger landing craft or accommodation for helicopters, meaning she still needs a length of pier to unload and isn’t able to “kick in the door” in a serious amphibious assault with much more than a company-sized force.
Comment on the above from Admiral Lord West, former head of the Royal Navy, and the prospect of the Argies getting Ponce: “At a time when the Argentine government still refuses to accept that UK sovereignty of the Falkland Islands is not up for discussion, I would prefer if our friends such as the United States did not sell them a landing ship capable of launching helicopters and large numbers of troops.”
