PASCAGOULA, Miss. – A graduate of Reid Ross Classical High School is serving in the U.S. Navy as part of a hand-selected crew charged with bringing the Navy’s newest and most advanced amphibious assault ship into service.
Logistic Specialist 2nd Class Anya Wallace, from Florissant, Mo., is serving aboard the amphibious assault ship America in Pascagoula, Miss. America, the first ship of its class, recently completed construction and was turned over to the Navy and her crew during a ship custody transfer ceremony at Ingalls Shipbuilding, April 10. After the ship is certified and sea trials are complete, the ship will be placed into commission as USS America and will be homeported in San Diego.
Wallace and the rest of the 1,000-person crew are slowly bringing the ship to life by overseeing construction, testing new equipment, training on new systems, standing in port watches, and preparing for potential shipboard casualties like fires, flooding and security breaches through continuous training evolutions.
The crew will eventually grow to more than 1,100 Sailors and nearly 1,900 embarked Marines when the ship is at sea. America is 844 feet long, 106 feet wide and weighs nearly 45,000 tons. The ship has twin gas-turbine engines that push the ship through the water at more than 22 knots.
As one of the sailors who will commission the ship, Wallace is getting a firsthand look at the improvements the Navy has incorporated into the design of the ship: a more fuel-efficient gas turbine propulsion plant, increased capacity for aviation operations, advanced weapons systems, and sophisticated electronics and communications suites.
Wallace said it is an exciting time to be in the Navy and helping to build a crew and a ship from scratch is something she never expected to be doing just a couple years ago.
The 21-year-old sailor realizes the historical value of what it means to not only be selected to be part of a commissioning crew, but to help commission a ship named after her country.
“Being assigned to a pre-commissioning unit is a real challenge,” she said. “This is my first ship, and I really don’t have anything to compare this to. So far it’s been a great experience, and one day I’m going to be able to tell my children that I helped commission this ship. Being a plankowner is something only a select few in the Navy can say they are and no one can take from you.”
Wallace said her biggest challenge is time management.
“I love how fast pace our job is onboard,” she said. “I’m working in S-8 division which issues general materials and consumable items. We also issue repair parts for machinery. Our biggest challenge day-to-day is time. Time management is critical in keeping up with services and our daily tasks.”
In addition to being excited about an opportunity to help commission the America, Wallace is also excited for her future in the Navy.
“My goal is to one day become a dental officer,” said Wallace. “When I was in high school I was involved in an internship program where I went to work with a dentist. There I realized how interesting it was and how much I liked it. Once I got to assist with a surgery and after that, I was sure it was for me.”
Wallace’s supervisor said he believes that she is an outstanding sailor.
“Petty Officer Wallace is a highly motived self-starter who is emulated by her peers and junior sailors for her outstanding military bearing,” said Senior Chief Logistics Specialist Roberto Bernardino, S-8 division leading chief petty officer.
“She was instrumental in the receipt, stowage, and load out of more than 3,000 tri-walls of initial outfitting materials. She single-handedly managed America’s office supply storeroom and was responsible for issue cleaning and office materials contributing to the operational readiness of 15 departments during crew move aboard.”
As the commanding officer of future USS America, Capt. Robert A. Hall, Jr., wants to recognize sailors who are setting the foundation for the nation’s newest amphibious warship.
“As the fourth U.S. Navy ship to bear the name ‘America’, we have the opportunity to build this command with the ideals of our namesake,” said Hall.
The America class of amphibious assault ships replaces the aging Tarawa class. Its design enables it to carry a larger and more diverse complement of aircraft, including the tilt-rotor MV-22 Osprey, the new Joint Strike Fighter, and a mix of cargo and assault helicopters. America will be able to support a wide spectrum of military operations and missions, including putting Marines ashore for combat operations, launching air strikes, keeping sea lanes free and open for the movement of global commerce, and delivering humanitarian aid following a disaster like the typhoon that devastated the Philippines in 2013.
