US Navy's "Blue Cruiser" Sails To Philippines For Goodwill Visit

USS Blue Ridge

MANILA (Mindanao Examiner / 01 Feb) – A U.S. Navy ship, the USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19), is expected to arrive in the Philippines for a goodwill mission, the U.S. Embassy announced Thursday.

The 19,600 ton ship, nicknamed “Blue Cruiser”, will deliver donated goods, such as clothes, toys, food, and medical supplies. The crew will also provide free health clinics for citizens in poor or remote communities and conduct engineering projects to construct and improve schools and public buildings.

U.S. officials declined to say the exact date USS Blue Ridge, the third Navy ship named after the Blue Ridge Mountains, a series of ranges in the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States, would arrive for security reason.

But U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney the ship’s crew is eager to visit the country and work with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in assisting people in need of humanitarian outreach. The ship will visit select locations in the Philippines.

"The American people are committed to working with our friends and partners in the Philippines. I am proud that the USS Blue Ridge is visiting the Philippines, and I know that the dedicated men and women on board are excited to visit this beautiful country and to partner with the Armed Forces of the Philippines to assist the Filipino people,” Kenney said.

The ship has a crew of 52 officers and 790 enlisted personnel. Aside from them, the Blue Ridge also has a Command Staff with 268 officers and 1173 enlisted men.

In addition to medical personnel, USS Blue Ridge will also deploy with a small team of engineers composed of “Seabee” Sailors from the Naval Mobile Construction Battalion THREE and Marines from the First Marine Air Wing in Okinawa to perform repair and minor construction projects ashore.

They will be joined by a group of Philippine military engineers who will embark onboard the ship. The U.S. 7th Fleet Band is also deployed aboard the ship and will be performing in select locations during its visit to the Philippines.

Since October 1979, the USS Blue Ridge has been forward-deployed to Yokosuka, Japan as the flagship for Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet.

The 194-meter ship participates routinely in U.S. and allied training exercise each year with countries throughout the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean and frequently makes port calls in countries like South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Australia. (Mindanao Examiner)