Middle East-based U.S. Mine Countermeasure Ships Spotted in Malaysia

Littoral Combat Ships USS Tulsa (LCS-16) and USS Santa Barbara (LCS-32) were docked Sunday in Malaysia, well away from the ships’ homeport Naval Support Activity Bahrain. The two Independence-variant LCSs were sighted by a shipspotter docked at the North Butterworth Container Terminal, a Penang port at the north end of the Malacca Strait. Tulsa and Santa Barbara are on a logistics stop, according to two USNI News sources, who declined to provide additional information. Tulsa and Santa Barbara, as well as LCS USS Canberra (LCS-30), make up the Navy’s first operational mine countermeasure mission packages in U.S. 5th Fleet. The