USNS Alatna

USNS Alatna, was a gasoline T1 tanker specially constructed for service in polar regions, was launched on 6 September 1956 at Staten Island, New York, by the Bethlehem Steel Corporation, sponsored by Mrs. Wilma Miles, and placed in service with the Military Sea Transportation Service in July 1957.

Alatna (T-AOT-81) underway.
History
United States
Name: Alatna
Builder: Bethlehem Steel, Baltimore, Maryland
Laid down: 15 March 1956
Launched: 6 September 1956
Sponsored by: Mrs. Wilma Miles
Acquired: 17 July 1957
In service: July 1957
Out of service: 8 August 1972
Identification: IMO number: 7606516
Fate: Disposed of by MARAD sale, 16 December 2006, to Teroaka Company of Japan
General characteristics
Type: T1-M2-4A arctic tanker hull
Displacement: 2,367 t.(lt) 5,720 t.(fl)
Length: 302 ft (92 m)
Beam: 61 ft (19 m)
Draft: 23 ft (7.0 m)
Propulsion: Diesel electric, two shafts, 3,200hp
Speed: 13 knots (24 km/h)
Capacity: 30,000-bbls
Complement: 51

Manned by a civil service crew, Alatna carried petroleum products from ports along the Atlantic and gulf coasts and in the Caribbean Sea to scattered American outposts in both polar regions. For more than 15 years, the tanker and her crew struggled against snow, wind, and ice to support American military bases in the Arctic and American scientists in the Antarctic. On 8 August 1972, Alatna was placed out of service and laid up with the Maritime Commission's National Defense Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay, California.

The Alatna Valley in the Antarctic was named after this ship.

References

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