USS Emory S. Land (AS 39) arrived at HMAS Stirling on 16 August following a months-long tour of Australian ports including Cairns, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. The submarine tender, based in Guam, is currently crewed by a combination of personnel from the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and US Navy (USN).
RAN personnel from various Fleet Support Units (FSU) joined the USS Emory S. Land in January this year to train on maintaining US Navy nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSN). The US Navy has also embedded sailors with FSU-West which is based at HMAS Stirling.
While alongside at HMAS Stirling, the submarine tender and crew will conduct a Submarine Tendered Maintenance Period (STMP) on a US Navy SSN. During the STMP, which is expected to last "several" weeks, the boat's mast and an important hydraulic valve will be replaced. The STMP will also simulate removing a 1.5-tonne pump from the boat.
Most of the work will be conducted by more than 30 Australians under the supervision of the tender's American crew.
“Our knowledge exchange with the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Fleet Support Unit (FSU) since January has been exceptionally productive,” said the commanding officer of the USS Emory S. Land, Captain Brent Spillner,
"Within weeks they were working shoulder-to-shoulder with U.S. technicians on real submarine repairs, and for the last six weeks we’ve had a team of U.S. Sailors embedded in the FSU West workshops at HMAS Stirling. We’re learning as much from them as they are from us, and we have Australian sailors and officers in the key management positions for the STMP," he added.