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USTRANSCOM Alphabet Soup

  • Published
  • By Bob Fehringer
  • U.S. Transportation Command Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  As promised last week, we here at the United States Transportation Command, that's USTRANSCOM, will explain, in lay terms, a common acronym, so that all may understand of what we speak. 

This week's feature is actually a pair of acronyms. USTRANSCOM (not an acronym of the week), has three component commands, Air Mobility Command, or AMC, which everyone on Scott should already know, since you probably work for them in one way or another. The other two may be a bit out of the grasp of most on base, Air Force-related people at least. 
 
They are Military Sealift Command, or MSC, and the Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command, known as SDDC (this group is right here on base, so it should be relatively easy to learn about, if you are so inclined). Please note the word Military before Surface. This is not a typo, again SDDC stands for Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command. This is a classic example of how military acronyms can be confusing at times. 

MSC provides sealift transportation services to deploy, sustain and redeploy U.S. forces around the globe. The command provides sealift with a fleet of government-owned and chartered U.S.-flagged ships. MSC executes VISA or Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement contracts for chartered vessels. Sealift ships principally move unit equipment from the U.S. to theaters of operation all over the world. 

In addition to sealift ships, MSC operates a fleet of prepositioned ships strategically placed around the world and loaded with equipment and supplies to sustain Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Defense Logistics Agency operations. These ships remain at sea, ready to deploy on short notice, which significantly reduces the response time for the delivery of urgently needed equipment and supplies to a theater of operation. 

SDDC provides ocean terminal, commercial ocean liner service and traffic management services to deploy, sustain and redeploy U.S. forces on a global basis. 

The command is responsible for surface transportation and is the interface between DoD shippers and the commercial transportation carrier industry. This includes movement of DoD member household goods and privately owned vehicles. 

SDDC is the nation's largest customer to the moving industry with more than 500,000 household goods moves a year. 

The command also provides transportation for troops and materiel to ports of departure in the U.S. and overseas and manages 24 ports worldwide, including military terminals at Sunny Point, N.C. and Concord, Calif. 

(This is the second in a series from USTRANSCOM Public Affairs)