The United States Navy’s Emory S Land-class submarine and surface vessel support ship, USS Frank Cable (AS 40), arrived at Chennai Port on Tuesday, August 26, 2025, for a short but significant visit aimed at strengthening bilateral naval cooperation.

Commissioned in 1979, the ship has served for more than four decades and continues to play a crucial role in providing forward-deployed maintenance, repair, rearming, and resupply support to U.S. submarines and surface vessels operating far from their home ports.

With a total strength of approximately 520 personnel, the crew includes 370 U.S. Navy sailors and 150 civilian mariners who together ensure the effective functioning of the vessel in complex deployment scenarios.

Briefing reporters on board, Executive Officer Commander Michael Rodriguez highlighted the unique hybrid composition of the ship’s crew, emphasising that the combination of civilian mariners and naval sailors makes the vessel highly capable of extended support missions.

He explained that the ship’s main function is to assist submarines—often stationed away from their home bases—with critical operational needs such as repairs, supplies, and rearmament. Civilian mariners, licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard, play a particularly important role in handling difficult high-sea navigation scenarios by conducting inspections and technical checks on submarines before returning with requisite information to restore and sustain the vessels.

The Frank Cable is led by Commanding Officer Captain Michael Thompson, who oversees its diverse range of missions. Despite being an older ship, Rodriguez underscored that meticulous maintenance practices have allowed the vessel to remain functional and reliable after 46 years of active service. Its onboard facilities also go beyond logistical support; the ship houses an extensive medical unit staffed with two physicians and 18 medical professionals.

Capabilities on board include fixed x-ray systems, a working laboratory, a pharmacy, and even a functional blood bank, bolstered by voluntary donations from crew members to enable emergency transfusions. Such comprehensive support capabilities make the Frank Cable an indispensable asset in extended naval operations.

In response to queries, Rodriguez noted that while weather conditions and logistical challenges remain their greatest operational hurdles, collaboration with global partners has enabled continuous improvement. This visit to Chennai, he stressed, provided a valuable opportunity to reinforce the U.S. Navy’s strategic partnership with the Indian Navy and foster people-to-people engagement.

The goodwill mission was reflected in outreach activities held earlier in the day, where sailors from the USS Frank Cable engaged in a friendly cricket match with students from Guru Nanak College in Chennai. The interaction underscored the cultural diplomacy aspect of naval port calls and further strengthened mutual understanding between the visiting American crew and local communities.

The brief stopover of the USS Frank Cable in Chennai underlines the ongoing maritime cooperation between India and the United States. Such visits not only enhance operational interoperability and logistical networking between the two navies but also contribute to regional security architecture in the Indo-Pacific, where freedom of navigation, strategic mobility, and naval partnerships are of paramount importance.

The vessel is expected to depart from Chennai on Wednesday, closing a short but symbolically significant visit that deepened defence diplomacy and reaffirmed the vitality of Indo-U.S. maritime ties.

Based On A PTI Report