.jpg) | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Ordered | 23 May 1997 |
| Builder | National Steel and Shipbuilding Company |
| Laid down | 24 August 1999 |
| Launched | 28 July 2000 |
| In service | 2 March 2001 |
| Identification | |
| Status | in service |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Watson-classvehicle cargo ship |
| Displacement | 29,000 tons |
| Length | 950 ft |
| Beam | 106 ft |
| Draft | 34 ft |
| Propulsion | Gas turbine |
USNSWatkins (T-AKR-315) is one ofMilitary Sealift Command's nineteen Large, Medium-Speed Roll-on/Roll-off Ships and is part of the 33 ships in the Prepositioning Program. She is aWatson-class vehicle cargo ship.
She was named for Master SergeantTravis E. Watkins, aMedal of Honor recipient.
Laid down on 24 August 1999 and launched on 28 July 2000,Watkins was put into service in the Pacific Ocean on 2 March 2001.
According toThe Guardian thehuman rights groupReprieve identified theWatkins and sixteen other USN vessels as having held "ghost prisoners" in clandestineextrajudicial detention.[1]
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromWatkins (T-AKR-315) at theNaval Vessel Register.