MILITARY SEALIFT COMMAND CHARTERS TOTEM OCEAN SHIP TO SUPPORT TROOPS

MILITARY SEALIFT COMMAND CHARTERS TOTEM OCEAN SHIP TO SUPPORT TROOPS    The U.S. Military Sealift Command has chartered the “Northern Lights,” a roll-on/roll-off ship owned by U.S.-flag carrier Totem Ocean Trailer Express, Inc., to support troops in the Middle East.
   TOTE said that the ship will transport military hardware to Southwest Asia. The ship departed Tacoma on Feb. 9, and will arrive in San Diego to be loaded with military cargo mid week.
   The “Northern Lights” normally trades commercially in the U.S. Jones Act trade between the West Coast and Alaska. The Jones Act requires that participating ships be U.S.-built, U.S.-owned and U.S.-crewed.
   “The importance of the Jones Act is underscored by the U.S. military requesting our firm to provide a vessel to support our national interests,” said Robert Magee, TOTE’s president and chief executive officer.