Picatinny’s Navy Detachment part of historic first-time test at sea

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. - Personnel assigned to Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division, Picatinny Detachment Naval Packaging, Handling, Storage and Transportation (PHS&T) Division at Picatinny Arsenal, recently supported a successful demonstration of the Transferrable Reload At-sea Method (TRAM) system while underway in the Pacific Ocean, the first of its kind for the U.S. Navy.

The Oct. 11 demonstration off the coast of San Diego, Calif., was the first time the Navy tested the system at sea.

Sailors aboard the Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Chosin (CG 65) used the hydraulically powered TRAM device to load an empty missile canister into the ship's MK 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS).

For the at-sea demonstration, Chosin connected to USNS Washington Chambers (T-AKE 11), a Military Sealift Command dry cargo and ammunition ship, which transferred the missile canister across cables to the cruiser. The sailors then used TRAM to move the missile canister along rails attached to the cruiser's VLS modules, tilt it into a vertical position, and lower it into a VLS cell.

Under the leadership of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Office of Technology, or 05T, not only was the equipment demonstrated, but also the ability of NAVSEA to leverage capabilities across the enterprise to complete complex missions in response to a rapid need. The TRAM system was developed by a team at Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division (NSWC PHD) in California to allow the at-sea unloading and rearming of VLS missile canisters. The TRAM device was refurbished by Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL) and was analyzed and tested by NSWC Indian Head (NSWC IHD) Naval PHST (Located at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey). To ensure successful and safe demonstration, operational development for the system was supported by Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG) and Navy Cargo Handling Battalion One (NCHB-1). A successful land-based demonstration was performed in July at NSWC PHD.

"We are transforming the way the Navy fights," Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro said during a press conference after observing the TRAM in a replenishment operation for the MK-41 VLS while both ships operated.

"Without the ability to rearm at sea, our service combatants must return to port, sometimes thousands of miles away, as we sometimes have to do in the Red Sea," Del Toro said. "After we shoot the missiles, we have to go back to other ports in order to rearm. The ability to rearm at sea will be critical to any future conflict in the Pacific and elsewhere."

"Currently, ships have to pull into specific ports to allow for pier-side removal of spent missile canisters and installation of new loaded canisters which can contain STANDARD Missiles, Tomahawk or Evolved Seasparrow Missiles," said David Rogers, Systems Integration Department Head, with the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division, Picatinny Detachment.

"Special equipment is required at the pier to allow for the canisters to be tilted in the vertical orientation and hoisted above the ship and installed in the ship's VLS cells. Not every port has this specialized equipment. The TRAM system will allow this operation to be done at sea between a supply ship and a combatant, anywhere," Rogers said.

The TRAM Device was on-site at picatinny arsenal for testing in the spring of 2024. During testing the Arsenal and DEVCOM assisted with infrastructure and service support.

Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division's (NSWC IHD) Picatinny Detachment is home to the command's Systems Integration Department, established at Picatinny, New Jersey.

The department's mission is to perform Research, Development and Acquisition of Guns and Ammunition for the Department of the Navy. This includes supporting system design and procurement; installation; in-service trouble shooting; and life cycle support for guns and ammunition.

The other main function of the Picatinny Detachment is Research, Development and Acquisition of Weapons and Armaments PHS&T systems. This includes design, qualification, acquisition support, and in-service engineering for weapons containers, ordnance handling equipment, ordnance storage/stowage systems, and transportation systems.

According to the Navy Secretary, the service is on track to begin fielding TRAM in two to three years.

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