Palacios welcomes USS Shoup; expects more port calls

Gov. Arnold I. Palacios welcomed the commanding officer and crew of the U.S. Navy’s guided-missile destroyer USS Shoup, which arrived at the Saipan Seaport’s Charlie Dock last Friday.

Palacios and Commonwealth Bureau of Military Affairs special assistant Daniel Aquino met with USS Shoup’s commanding officer Dale Tourtelotte near the ship’s ladder.

After briefly talking with Tourtelotte, Palacios told the media he was able to convince them to allow the media aboard the ship and get a tour of the vessel.

Palacios himself did not board the ship. After granting the media interview, he left the seaport. He, however, is expected to return today, Monday, to tour the ship.

It was only Aquino and a staff of the Office of the Governor who joined the media in touring the ship.

Palacios said that people will be seeing more U.S. military ships make port calls in the CNMI, with the Indo-Pacific commander making a commitment to try as much as possible to have more of these port calls than in the past.

Palacios said the 350 crew of the USS Shoup crew are going to be on Saipan until tomorrow, Tuesday.

“So, it’s going to be significant. They’re going to be hanging around the island or touring the island and visiting businesses,” he said.

Tourtelotte led the media in touring the ship’s facilities and explaining their functions. He has been in the U.S. Navy for about 18 and a half years.

Tourtelotte, who has been in command of USS Shoup for two and a half years, said this is his first time on Saipan and that the crew is excited to go out and enjoy the wonderful weather and the atmosphere.

The commanding officer said it’s their first time on Saipan since they joined the Seventh Fleet for about a year now.

Tourtelotte said there is a lot of going on in the Pacific and their main purpose here is just to protect the freedom of navigation and the overall prosperity of the Seventh Fleet in the Indo-Pacific region.

USS Shoup, which has length of 509 feet and six inches and a beam of 66 feet, is named after Medal of Honor recipient Gen. David M. Shoup, the 22nd commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps. The ship was commissioned in 2002 so it’s about 21 years old.

The USS Shoup is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer that has multiple mission areas.

“We’ve got to protect ourselves against surface vessels, air, submarines, and ballistic missiles,” Tourtelotte said.