Winners were announced March 23 by Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP).
The Jacksonville and Mayport fuel operations sit on either side of the St. Johns River, near the river’s opening to the Atlantic. The Jacksonville site is the Navy’s largest deep-water fuel terminal in the Southeast, providing a strategic advantage to the Atlantic Fleet.
In 2023, the 35-person, military-civilian group operating the two locations received, stored, maintained and issued tens of millions of gallons of fuel. They replenished hundreds of U.S. and partner-nation ships, in addition to supporting Naval Station Mayport aircraft via pipeline transfers. They also supported fuel requirements for Department of Defense units around the Southeast.
“While I’m not surprised, it’s great for the Jax-Mayport fuel team to be recognized for its hard work,” said Capt. Matt Bolls, commanding officer of NAVSUP Fleet Logistics Center (FLC) Jacksonville, which has administrative oversight of the fuel personnel.
“They are the center of gravity for fuels in the region and the lifeblood that supports every warfighter, aircraft and surface combatant in the tri-base area,” Bolls said.
The teams are led by Southeast Regional Fuels Officer Lt. Cmdr. Tyson Biddle, who was 2022 Navy fuels officer of the year. The management team includes Steve Schultz, Kirk Moats, Romie Blackshear and Jack Bays.
Among the teams’ accomplishments in 2023 was 100% product inventory accuracy while operating with only 70% of the allotted workforce. The group still provided full mission support with no impacts on customers. It also sustained zero safety mishaps.
In addition to regular work, 2023 also brought Hurricane Idalia and Tropical Storm Harold. The storms flooded critical facilities at the Jacksonville site and damaged fencing at Mayport. It tested the resiliency of the workforce. But the damaged spaces and fence lines were repaired and returned to full service. Additionally, in the 72 hours prior to Idalia, the teams issued 700,000 gallons of fuel to Jacksonville military assets in preparation for the rough weather.
“This is such a huge accomplishment for our team! They work so hard every day to support our warfighters, and it is great for them to be recognized for their contributions,” Biddle said.
“The Navy fuels ecosystem is a complex supply chain and management structure. Maintaining sound operational practices, while keeping our infrastructure mission-ready, is a huge effort that requires extensive coordination between our mission partners at Defense Logistics Agency, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, the Naval Petroleum Office, Naval Station Mayport, Navy Region Southeast and many more. Our team does an incredible job of coordinating and executing the mission in this complex system each and every day,” he said.
This win comes just after another prestigious honor for NAVSUP FLC Jacksonville’s teams in Jacksonville. The supply and aviation support detachments at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Mayport and Naval Air Station Key West were awarded the Commander Naval Air Forces Ashore Supply Excellence Award (Blue E) in February.
