Last week, the Military Sealift Command finished cargo loading operations at Port Hueneme, California, for Operation Deep Freeze 2026. They sent the Dutch-flagged heavy-lift ship Plantijngracht south to McMurdo Station in Antarctica. This decision has raised concerns about MSC's dependence on foreign-flagged ships for important U.S. government missions.
From December 21 to January 7, dockworkers loaded 305 cargo items onto the ship, including construction materials, heavy machinery, and life-support supplies required to keep the remote research station operational through the Antarctic winter. The ship is also transporting a 65-ton Modular Causeway System (MCS) that will replace McMurdo’s traditional ice pier, which is vital for future resupply missions.
Four members of the Military Sealift Command Pacific’s Expeditionary Port Unit supervised this intricate loading process, coordinating with the ship's crew, terminal services, and MSC planners. Navy Cmdr. Allan Phillips, the unit's commanding officer, mentioned that the deployment provided reservists with a unique perspective on the Navy’s commercial logistics.
“This mission gives us a broader experience of what happens on the logistics side of the Navy, particularly with MSC and how they operate,” Phillips said. “For us reservists, it shifts our focus from warships to working with civilians and MSC.”
The team started their tasks just before Christmas and continued through the holiday season. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Marilyn Lazar, a hospital corpsman in the unit, noted that this assignment highlighted how specialized missions contribute to broader defense operations.
“For the enlisted members of the team, we get to see how this type of mission fits into the overall operation,” Lazar stated.
After a stop in Christchurch, New Zealand, to pick up more cargo, Plantijngracht will travel approximately 8,040 nautical miles over about a month before reaching McMurdo. There, the Navy Cargo Handling Battalion ONE will unload and assemble the causeway sections and begin full cargo operations. The ship will also take back materials, including waste and ice core samples, destined for U.S. labs.
The choice to use a Dutch-flagged vessel instead of a U.S.-flagged one has faced criticism from various maritime stakeholders. Sal Mercogliano, a maritime historian and host of the YouTube channel “What’s Going On in Shipping,” claimed that this decision undermines the efforts to rebuild the American merchant marine.
He suggested that MSC should “review its contracting practices that favor foreign-flagged ships over U.S. ships” if defense leaders are genuinely committed to strengthening domestic shipping capabilities.
Mentioning an unverified account, Mercogliano noted that the foreign vessel was chosen because the potential U.S. ship was outside the 3,000-mile radius of Port Hueneme at the time of the contract award and would have arrived four days late. However, he pointed out that about 25% of the cargo was already anticipated to be a week late, indicating that the U.S.-flagged vessel could have loaded and departed on a similar schedule.
MSC addressed this issue in a statement, explaining that a competitive bidding process began in October 2025. “The solicitation did not produce any technically acceptable results, so it was reopened on November 14, 2025. This time, only one available and technically acceptable vessel was found, which was a foreign-flagged ship operated by a U.S. company. They were awarded the contract on December 10, 2025.”
Operation Deep Freeze is a Defense Support to Civilian Authorities initiative conducted together with the National Science Foundation, which oversees the U.S. Antarctic Program. This operation involves active-duty, Guard, and Reserve personnel from various services and primarily operates out of Christchurch and McMurdo. MSC-chartered vessels have made the annual trip to Antarctica since the station was established in 1955.
Last season, MSC used U.S.-flagged vessels MV Ocean Gladiator and MV Ocean Giant for Deep Freeze 2025. These ships delivered 321 cargo items and conducted the first operational use of the Marine Causeway System, replacing the old ice pier.