Deployed task force gets first replenishment at sea

10/1/2009 By Cpl. Jeffrey Belovarac , 11th MEU

PACIFIC OCEAN

The amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard received its first food and fuel replenishment Sept. 30 since deploying with more than 1,200 members of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit to the Western Pacific Sept. 24.

Forty-four pallets of supplies – from batteries to potatoes, to energy drinks and rice – were flown from fleet replenishment oiler USNS Henry J. Kaiser via a single MH-60S Seahawk helicopter to Bonhomme Richard’s flight deck.

The oiler, sailing 200 feet alongside the amphibious assault ship, pumped more than 400,000 gallons of engine diesel and 80,000 gallons of jet fuel into Bonhomme Richard.

The Seahawk made more than a dozen trips, sometimes carrying as many as five pallets at a time, which hung in nets beneath the fuselage.

“It’s kind of scary, and kind of a thrill at the same time, with a helicopter weighing thousands of pounds coming over your head,” said Lance Cpl. Andrew L. Fillmore, 19, from Salt Lake City.

Sailors and Marines near the landing area received the cargo and cleared the nets until every pallet was on board.

PACIFIC OCEAN-Marines aboard USS Bonhomme Richard here prepare to connect a pallet to a hovering MH-60S Seahawk helicopter during an underway replenishment Sept. 30. The re-supply was the first for Bonhomme Richard since deploying Sept. 24 with more than 1,200 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit members.
, Sgt. Scott Biscuiti, 9/30/2009 9:03 AM
PACIFIC OCEAN -A MH-60S Seahawk carries supplies to USS Bonhomme Richard here Sept. 30 during an underway replenishment. The resupply was the first for Bonhomme Richard since deploying Sept. 24 with more than 1,200 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit members., Gunnery Sgt. Scott Dunn, 9/30/2009 8:42 AM
PACIFIC OCEAN -A MH-60S Seahawk carries supplies from fleet replenishment oiler USNS Henry J. Kaiser to USS Bonhomme Richard here Sept. 30 during an underway replenishment. The resupply was the first for Bonhomme Richard since deploying Sept. 24 with more than 1,200 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit members., Gunnery Sgt. Scott Dunn, 9/30/2009 8:35 AM
PACIFIC OCEAN-A sailor aboard USS Bonhomme Richard here signals the pilots of an MH-60S Seahawk helicopter during an underway replenishment Sept. 30. A single Seahawk helicopter delivered 44 pallets of supplies to Bonhomme Richard during the ships first re-supply since deploying Sept. 24 with more than 1,200 members of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
, Sgt. Scott Biscuiti, 9/30/2009 7:55 AM
PACIFIC OCEAN-Combat cargo Marines and sailors aboard USS Bonhomme Richard here connect cargo nets to an MH-60S Seahawk helicopter during an underway replenishment Sept. 30. The re-supply was the first for Bonhomme Richard since deploying Sept. 24 with more than 1,200 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit members.
, Sgt. Scott Biscuiti, 9/30/2009 9:05 AM
PACIFIC OCEAN-A sailor aboard USS Bonhomme Richard here signals the pilots of a MH-60S Seahawk helicopter during an underway replenishment Sept. 30. A single Seahawk helicopter delivered 44 pallets of supplies to Bonhomme Richard during the ships first re-supply since deploying Sept. 24 with more than 1,200 members of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit., Sgt. Scott Biscuiti, 9/30/2009 8:22 AM
PACIFIC OCEAN-Sailors aboard USS Bonhomme Richard here gather cargo nets during an underway replenishment Sept. 30. The re-supply was the first for Bonhomme Richard since deploying Sept. 24 with more than 1,200 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit members.
, Cpl. Jeffrey Belovarac, 10/1/2009 1:05 AM