to naval task forces the technique was classified so that enemy nations could not duplicate it.

In the 1950s and 1960s the U.S. Navy developed a multi-product supply ship that could deliver fuel, ammunition and stores while underway. These ships saw the introduction of a transfer system using a ram tensioner that keeps the highline between the ships tensioned, allowing for smooth transfer, as well as taking into account any movement of the ships. Over time this method evolved into the Standard Tensioned Replenishment Alongside Method