A new Navy expeditionary fast transport ship will be named after the Wyoming city of Cody.
The Cody Enterprise reports Cody Mayor Matt Hall announced recently that U.S. Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer informed him the ship will be named the Cody.
Cody joins Casper, Cheyenne, Laramie and a few other communities as Wyoming cities chosen as U.S. Navy ship namesakes.
The Cody is under construction and is expected to be commissioned within the year.
Fast transport ships carry personnel, equipment and supplies.
Navy Times editor’s note: This AP story doesn’t mention it, but the vessel will be classified T-EPF-14, which means it’s a Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport.
You might remember USNS Spearhead originally as JHSV-1, which was intended for the Army’s 7th Sustainment Brigade. Despite coming in over budget and with defects that had to be corrected over the initial five vessels, the Navy counts on the ship to deliver 600 short tons of military cargo 1,200 nautical miles at an average speed of 35 knots in Sea State 3.
Because of its very shallow draft, the Cody will be able to on/off-load combat-ready Abrams Main Battle Tanks and up to 312 embarked troops. There’s also a flight deck for helicopters.
Located in the northwestern corner of Wyoming, Cody is a small city of under 10,000 residents. Yes, it was named after Col. William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody.
So it’s a town with a namesake that’s long been associated with the Army, not the Navy.
The newspaper that broke the news that the next EFT was going to honor Cody is the Cody Enterprise, which was co-founded by Buffalo Bill in 1899.
Firmly entrenched in cowboy culture (and a steady stream of tourists), it features rodeos and museums and — about 10 miles out of town — what was the Heart Mountain Relocation Center for Japanese-Americans interned during World War II.
At its peak, the camp’s population reached 10,767, larger than today’s Cody.
