USS Kalamazoo (AOR-6)
USS Kalamazoo (AOR-6) was a Wichita-class replenishment oiler commissioned by the U.S. Navy in 1973. She continued to support Navy requirements until 1996 when she was placed in the reserve fleet and later struck.
_replenishes_USS_Saratoga_(CV-60)_in_the_Atlantic_Ocean_on_23_June_1993.jpg) USS Kalamazoo in underway replenishment with USS Saratoga. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name: | USS Kalamazoo |
| Namesake: | Kalamazoo, Michigan and the Kalamazoo River |
| Builder: | General Dynamics Corporation, Quincy, Massachusetts |
| Laid down: | 1 October 1970 |
| Launched: | 1 November 1972 |
| Commissioned: | 11 August 1973, as USS Kalamazoo (AOR-6) |
| Decommissioned: | 16 August 1996 |
| Stricken: | 29 October 1998 |
| Identification: | IMO number: 8644084 |
| Motto: | KZOO Can Do |
| Nickname(s): | The Zoo |
| Honors and awards: | Joint Meritorious Unit Award |
| Fate: | Sold for scrap, 15 July 2008, for $1,465,726 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Wichita-class replenishment oiler |
| Displacement: |
|
| Length: | 659 ft (201 m) |
| Beam: | 96 ft (29 m) |
| Draft: | 37 ft (11 m) |
| Propulsion: | 3 × boilers, 2 × steam turbines, 2 × shafts, 32,000 shp (23,862 kW) |
| Speed: | 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) |
| Complement: | 34 officers, 463 enlisted |
| Armament: |
|
| Aircraft carried: | 2 × CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters |
| Aviation facilities: | Helo Deck and berthing for 8 Airdet Personnel |
Construction
Kalamazoo was laid down on 1 October 1970 and launched on 1 November 1972 at the shipyard of the General Dynamics Corporation, Quincy, Massachusetts. On 11 August 1973 she was commissioned USS Kalamazoo (AOR-6) and placed into service for the fleet. Her first homeport was Mayport Naval Station, Mayport, Florida.
Service history
| Date | to Date | Deployment or event |
|---|---|---|
| 11 August 1973 | — | Commissioned |
| June 1974 | February 1975 | Mediterranean |
| January 1975 | December 1975 | Marjorie Sterrett Battleship Fund Award Atlantic Fleet Winner |
| April 1975 | October 1975 | Blue Nose - Arctic Circle |
| July 1976 | July 1976 | New York Harbor Tall Ships Celebration |
| January 1977 | August 1977 | Mediterranean |
| Sept 1978 | May 1979 | Regular overhaul |
| April 1980 | October 1980 | Mediterranean-Indian Ocean |
| 8 October 1981 | — | Line-crossing ceremony, 0 meridian, Emerald Shellback Initiation - Atlantic Ocean |
| October 1981 | April 1982 | Mediterranean-West Africa |
| November 1982 | May 1983 | Mediterranean |
| December 1983 | June 1984 | Overhaul - Hoboken N.J. |
| May 1985 | December 1985 | Mediterranean-Lebanon |
| August 1986 | October 1986 | North Atlantic: Blue Nose |
| December 1986 | June 1987 | Mediterranean |
| December 1988 | June 1989 | Mediterranean: This was called "The Unexpected Cruise". The Kzoo was unexpectedly placed into rotation for deployment after the USS Detroit (AOE-4) was unable to make her scheduled deployment. |
| December 1989 | May 1990 | Caribbean (Guantanamo Bay, Puerto Rico and joint anti-smuggling LEO Ops (law enforcement operations) with the US Coast Guard. |
| December 1990 | June 1991 | "Operation Desert Storm" |
| October 1992 | April 1993 | Mediterranean |
| May 1994 | November 1994 | Mediterranean-Indian Ocean-Persian Gulf |
| 16 August 1996 | — | Decommissioned |
Decommissioning
On 16 August 1996 Kalamazoo was decommissioned and placed in reserve at the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River, Lee Hall, Virginia. She was struck from the Navy list on 29 October 1998 and, on 15 July 2008, she was sold by the U.S. Maritime Administration to Esco Marine, Brownsville, Texas, for $1,465,726. Kalamazoo was towed out of James River Reserve Fleet on Tuesday, 30 September 2008, en route to ESCO Brownsville.[2]
Honors and awards
Qualified Kalamazoo personnel were authorized the following:
- Joint Meritorious Unit Award
- Navy Unit Commendation
- Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation
- Navy Battle "E" Ribbon (2)
- Navy Expeditionary Medal (1-Iran/Indian Ocean, 5-Lebanon)
- National Defense Service Medal with star
- Southwest Asia Service Medal with three stars
See also
References
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to USS Kalamazoo (AOR-6). |
- "USS KALAMAZOO (AOR-6) Deployments & History". hullnumber.com. 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- http://www.dailypress.com/news/local/dp-local_atbay_1002oct02,0,5855783.story
- Photo gallery of Kalamazoo at NavSource Naval History
- Wildenberg, Thomas (1996). Gray Steel and Black Oil: Fast Tankers and Replenishment at Sea in the U.S. Navy, 1912-1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. Retrieved 28 April 2009.