USN fast combat support ships and the last hundred miles

Should the US Navy build a new AOE class to replace the Supply class, or rely on oilers and cargo ships?

The answer favors taking fast combat support seriously because 25-knot replenishment ships can sustain battle groups without slowing them in the final operational approach.

Replenishment speed translates directly into operational freedom. Supply-class ships are aging, but their 25-knot speed gives them a distinct role beside slower Kaiser-class, Lewis and Clark-class, and related support ships. The difference between roughly 25 knots and 20 to 21 knots matters when an auxiliary must reach a fast carrier or large surface group without dictating its pace. At-sea replenishment near the battle group is the naval equivalent of the difficult last mile, except the distance can be a hundred miles.