Ship support unit japan

SSU Japan is responsible to MSC HQ and MSC Far East to provide direct support to MSC ships and act as MSC's liaison with local commands and the government of Japan. SSU Japan is headquartered at Yokohama North Dock with a detachment in Sasebo and provides port services for MSC ships throughout the country of Japan, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, including voyage repairs, availabilities, and major overhauls.

The organization is commanded by an active-duty Naval officer and staffed with the following organizational departments: N1 (Administration), N3 (Operations/Port Operations), N4 (Logistics), N6 (Information & Technology Support), N7 (Port Engineer), N8 (Accounting), and N10 (Contract Support).

Annually SSU Japan conducts an average of 298 ship visits and 2,786 in-port days throughout Japan and operates two warehouses, one at North Dock and one in Sasebo, Japan. These facilities provide logistics support for all MSC units operating within the Pacific theater.

Leadership

Commanding Officer

Lieutenant Commander Shawn T. Tagan
Commanding Officer
Ship Support Unit - Japan

Lt. Cmdr. Shawn T. Tagan, a native of Melrose, Mass., graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in American Politics & Law. He holds a Master of Business Administration from the Naval Postgraduate School and graduated with distinction. He is also a qualified joint specialty officer with extensive joint, fleet, and overseas experience.

Lt. Cmdr. Tagan's sea assignments include tours aboard USS Gary (FFG 51) homeported in Yokosuka, Japan and San Diego, Calif.; USS John C Stennis (CVN 74) homeported in Bremerton, Wash.; and USS Antietam (CG 54) as weapons, combat systems, and executive officer, forward deployed to the Western Pacific 7th Fleet area of responsibility (AOR).

Ashore, Lt. Cmdr. Tagan was assigned to Commander, Navy Region Northwest where he served as current operations officer (N36) responsible for mission accomplishment across the entire US northwest region including Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. He also served Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka (CFAY) in Japan as operations officer. Lt. Cmdr. Tagan completed a joint tour at U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), J7 joint and coalition warfighting directorate as the command military exercise planner for all U.S. maritime exercise on the African Continent, commanding over 250,000 U.S., coalition, and partner forces and coordinating with more than 50 interagency and non-government organizations. He deployed to the AFRICOM AOR on 26 occasions training local partner forces and coalition forces, while executing missions as part of U.S. special forces. Lt. Cmdr. Tagan also completed a tour as the AFRICOM joint operations center (JOC) operations officer where he directly reported to the AFRICOM 4-Star general and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. As an instructor of maritime warfare (N73) at Surface Warfare Officers School, he was responsible for training and development of all surface warfare department heads as well as providing instruction for prospective executive officers, commanding officers and major command students. During the COVID pandemic, Lt. Cmdr. Tagan was promoted to Acting Chief-of-Staff and executive assistant of Surface Warfare Schools Command, in Newport, R.I.

Lt. Cmdr. Tagan is currently serving as Commanding Officer of Military Sealift Command Ship Support Unit Japan in Yokohama, Japan.

Personal awards include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (three awards), and various other medals, unit awards and campaign ribbons.

Executive Officer

Lieutenant Commander Eric S. Topor
Executive Officer
Ship Support Unit - Japan

Lieutenant Commander Eric Topor is a native of Mass., and originally commissioned into the Merchant Marine Reserve Individual Ready Reserve Group in 2001. In 2012, on moving to Japan, he received an honorable discharge and left the Navy Reserve. In 2016, he recommissioned into the Navy Reserve under the NAVET program as a Strategic Sealift Officer. In 2020 LCDR Topor completed the Naval War College’s web enabled JPME Phase I.

Lt. Cmdr. Topor was assigned to Expeditionary Port Unit 113 in Fort Worth, Texas, as port services officer, and Operational Support Unit 1903 from NOSC Guam. Topor has supported exercises such as MSC’s Turbo Activation, and Key Resolve. He served as the N4, and N9 Department Head for OSU 1903. Topor also actively supported MSC Ship Support Unit Japan.

In 2020, Lt. Cmdr. Topor was involuntarily mobilized in support of Operation Inherent Resolve and Operation Spartan Shield. While mobilized, he served as emergency management officer/ COVID Crisis Action Team lead for Isa Air Base, Bahrain in the height of the global COVID 19 pandemic. Topor also served as Assistant Operations and Future Operations Officer for Isa Air Base, Bahrain. As Assistant Operations and Future Operations Officer he coordinated multiple joint trainings with the Bahrain Defense Force, laying the groundwork for closer coordination between U.S. and Bahrain forces. Topor was instrumental in the planning of the first ever bilateral, multi-service joint training exercise at Isa Air Base, between the U.S., and Royal Bahrain forces. He currently serves as the Executive Officer for MSC Japan and as assistant maintenance officer for MSC SSU Singapore managing the tracking of all maintenance efforts on Combat Logistics Force vessels throughout the Far East AOR.

In his civilian career Topor is the Production Control Supervisor for Maersk Line, Limited supporting the care of supplies in storage of Army Prepositioned Stocks 4 in Yokohama, Japan. Maersk Line, Limited supports all aspects of the operation and maintenance of 36 army vessels, and over 800 pieces of Modular Causeway System. Topor and Maersk Line, Limited also support the bi-annual CJLOTS exercise Pacific Reach, the annual Pacific Utility and Logistics Support Exercise – Watercraft (PULSE-W), and various other exercises.

Lt. Cmdr. Topor graduated from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy in 2001, with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Marine Engineering. He has sailed on various commercial ships, and MSC vessels. He holds unlimited horsepower licenses as Chief Engineer of Motor Ships, First Assistant Engineer of Steam Ships, and Third Assistant Engineer of Gas Turbine Ships.

Senior Enlisted Leader

Electronics Technician First Class (SW/AW) J. Jensen
Senior Enlisted Leader
Ship Support Unit - Japan

Petty Officer Jensen was born and raised in Riverside, California. He enlisted in the Navy on September 13, 2017.

His sea tours include four years on the forward deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) from February 2019 to March 2023 where he served as lead technician for the SPS-48G air search radar. There he was promoted to become Leading Petty Officer (LPO) for Radar Division.

Jensen is currently serving as Senior Enlisted Leader (SEL) and lead technician for the Mobile Expeditionary Communications Kit (MECK) for Military Sealift Command Ship Support Unit Japan.

Jensen's Awards include two Navy Achievement Medals, the Global War on Terrorism Medal, Expeditionary Sea Service Medal, and a Meritorious Unit Commendation.

Admin Comm: +81 (0) 45-872-6480
DSN: 315-269-6480

Admin Asst. Comm: +81 (0) 45-872-6423
DSN: 315-269-6423

Mailing address:

MSC SSU JAPAN
PSC 471, Box 200
FPO AP 96347-2600

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Ship support unit japan

Commanding Officer

Executive Officer

Senior Enlisted Leader

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