During the Gilbert operation, the "sea going service station" concept emerged. Sabine and other oilers were assigned designated station areas. Individual combatant ships were sent to these areas in accordance with a preplanned schedule, rather than steam in groups to the areas where each might lose hours waiting for her turn alongside the oiler.
During the Gilbert operation, a new strategy was implemented: assigning specific stations to oilers and dispatching individual ships to those stations on a pre-planned schedule. This approach avoided the delays that would occur if ships had to wait their turn alongside the oilers.