_underway_in_1988.jpg) | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSSacramento |
| Namesake | Sacramento, California |
| Ordered | 8 August 1960 |
| Builder | Puget Sound Naval Shipyard,Bremerton, Washington |
| Laid down | 30 June 1961 |
| Launched | 14 September 1963 |
| Commissioned | 14 March 1964 |
| Decommissioned | 1 October 2004 |
| Stricken | 1 October 2004 |
| Homeport | Bremerton,Washington |
| Motto | Ready for Service |
| Nickname(s) | "Golden Bear" |
| Fate | Scrapped at ESCO Marine,Brownsville (USA). Scrapping complete 11 July 2008 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Sacramento-classfast combat support ship |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 796 ft (243 m) |
| Beam | 107 ft (33 m) |
| Draft | 38 ft (12 m) |
| Installed power | 100,000 shp (75 MW) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 30knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)+ |
| Capacity |
|
| Complement | 34 officers and 602 enlisted |
| Sensors and processing systems |
|
| Electronic warfare & decoys | |
| Armament |
|
| Aircraft carried | 2 ×CH-46A/D Sea Knight helicopters |
USSSacramento (AOE-1) was the third ship in theUnited States Navy to bear the name, for both theriver, and thecapital city of California. She was thelead ship ofher class of fast combat support ship.
She combined the functions of three logistics ships in one hull;fleet oiler (AO),ammunition ship (AE), andrefrigerated stores ship (AFS).
AdmiralArleigh Burke originated the concept of a single supply ship system. He saw the design as an answer to logistics problems he encountered duringWorld War II. The limited speed, range, and payload of early underway replenishment (UnRep) groups prevented resupply due to bad weather and tactical demands of the war. To counter these problems, the Fast Combat Support Ship (AOE) was designed.
The keel for the first of the Navy's fast combat support ships was laid atPuget Sound Naval Shipyard,Bremerton, Washington on 30 June 1961. The traditional champagne bottle was broken against the bow of AOE-1 on 14 September 1963, by the ship's sponsor, Mrs.Edmund Brown, wife of theGovernor of California.
Sacramento wascommissioned on 15 March 1964. Undersecretary of the Navy,Paul B. Fay Jr., addressed the crowd, stating, "The greatest pleasure I have in being here today is ... participating in the commissioning of a vessel which will provide the Navy with a unique capability hitherto never contained in one ship." He added the ship would be able to "run in speed with adestroyer escort, thereby giving our fast attack carrier task forces a flexibility of action hitherto unknown."
Sacramento served in theGulf of Tonkin during theVietnam War. She was known as a "floating supermarket" because of all the goods she carried.
_refuels_USS_Mars_(AFS-1)_and_USS_Walke_(DD-723)_c1966.jpg)
The FAST (Fast Automated Shuttle Transfer) cargo handling system originally installed was replaced with the STREAM (Standard Tensioned Replenishment Alongside Method) underway replenishment system in 1977.
Her original armament consisted of four twin3"/50 caliber guns. The two forward guns were replaced by Mk.29NATOSea Sparrow in 1976, and the two aft mounts were replaced by Mk.15Phalanx CIWS in 1981.
Sacramento was deployed to the Persian Gulf and supported operations during the First Gulf War including Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.
In 1995, MK-23 TAS (Target Acquisition System) was installed to facilitate NSSMS and locate and track air threats.
In 1995 while in the Persian Gulf, the ship assisted in "Operation Southern Watch" and in "Operation Vigilant Sentinel". During an underway replenishment with theUSS Abraham Lincoln theSacramento lost her steering and collided into the starboard side of the Abraham Lincoln, crushing the M-frames, partially crushing a female crew berthing area, and punching a large hole in the TACAN room of theSacramento. TheLincoln sustained damage to her catwalks, an aircraft elevator was jammed into the up position and an approximately 10 ft2 hole was torn into the island. Both ships had to dock atJebel Ali, U.A.E. for repair, the latter for several weeks.
In 1996 theSacramento had oneNATOSea Sparrow launcher on the forecastle, twoPhalanx CIWS past mid-ship port and starboard, one 25 mm automatic cannon on the port side, and four .50 caliber machine guns: two port and two starboard. The ship was also fitted with electronic warfare equipment: anAN/SLQ-32 with fourMK.36 super-RBOC (Rapid Bloom Offboard Chaff) decoys, and anAN/SLQ-25 towed torpedo decoy (NIXIE) run by an electronics technician.
Sacramento was the first AOE to ever qualify for an electromagnetic interference certificate in 1996.
Sacramento decommissioned in October 2004. On 13 April 2007, a contract for the ship's disposal was awarded to Esco Marine.Sacramento was scrapped by Esco Marine in Brownsville,Texas, early 2008.
Sacramento is considered a benchmark in West Coast shipbuilding. The ship and two of her sister ships,Seattle (AOE-3) andDetroit (AOE-4), are the largest ships ever built on the West Coast as of 2005. OnlyIowa-classbattleships andaircraft carriers have greater displacements thanSacramento.
The ship's main engines came from the never-completed battleshipKentucky (BB-66), and delivered in excess of 100,000 shaft horsepower (75 MW) to two 23-foot (7 m) screws weighing 19.25 tons each, the largest on any ship in the Navy.
Sacramento was the fastest AOE (fast combat support ship) ever. TheSacramento routinely went head-to-head in speed runs and won against the west coast's AOE's, including theCamden (AOE-2) and theRainier (AOE-7).Sacramento also beat the fastest of the east coast AOE's, including theDetroit (AOE-4) and theArctic (AOE-8) in head-to-head competition.[citation needed]
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.
