- USS Passumpsic (AO-107)
USS "Passumpsic" (AO-107), the only
United States Navy ship to bear the name, was an "Ashtabula" classfleet replenishment oiler that served in the U.S. Navy from 1946 to 1973, then transferred to theMilitary Sealift Command to continue service asUnited States Naval Ship USNS "Passumpsic" (T-AO-107).Construction and Commissioning
USS "Passumpsic" (AO-107) was laid down on
8 March 1945 asMaritime Commission Hull 2703 bySun Shipbuilding and Drydock Company , Chester,Pennsylvania . She was launched on31 October 1945 , sponsored by Mrs. M. F. Draemel, wife ofRear Admiral Milo F. Draemel , then Commandant of the4th Naval District , and commissioned on1 April 1946 ,Captain C.M. Ryan in command.Operational History 1946-1964
After a shakedown in the
Caribbean Sea , "Passumpsic" operated out of Long Beach,California , under the control of Commander,Service Force Pacific , servicingU.S. Pacific Fleet units while attached toService Squadron 1 andService Squadron 3 . She visitedJapan ,Taiwan ,Korea ,Southeast Asia ,Hong Kong ,North Borneo , theFiji Islands ,Australia ,Arabia ,Ceylon , thePhilippines ,Midway Atoll ,Oahu , theMarshall Islands , and theMariana Islands . From June 1950 through February 1954, "Passumpsic" spent 34 of 44 months outside of theUnited States . Though not subjected to hostile fire during theKorean War , she received nine out of the tenbattle stars awarded to U.S. ships during that conflict."Passumpsic’s" assignments after the Korean War entailed annual deployments to the
Western Pacific ."Jumboization"
Upon return from deployment in April 1964, "Passumpsic" underwent an
INSURV Board inspection atLong Beach Naval Shipyard in preparation for "Jumboization," a project of modernization and renovation for "Mispillion"-classfleet oiler s. She steamed on12 October 1964 for theAmerican Shipbuilding Company yard at Lorain,Ohio , where the conversion was to take place. AtBoston Naval Shipyard aSupply Overhaul Assistance Program (SOAP) was set up to sort, identify, and repackage the ship’s stock of repair parts and to receive, sort, and stow the repair parts supplied by the contractor and the U.S. Navy in conjunction with the conversion programs. After passage through theSt. Lawrence Seaway , "Passumpsic" was placed "in commission, in reserve" on26 November 1964 and most of her crew detached, leaving a nucleus party of four officers and 28 enlisted men. The ship was then turned over to the American Shipbuilding Company. The conversion involved transferring her existing midships superstructure to a newly constructed tank section. The original hull was cut and the bow bow andstern sections were added to the new tank section. Conversion modifidations increased "Passumpsic's" length by 91 feet (27.7 m), her lightdisplacement from 7,423 tons to 12,840 tons, her full-load displacement from 25,500 to 34,350 tons, and her maximum draft from 32 feet (9.75 m) to 36 feet (11 m)."Passumpsic" departed Lorain on
22 November 1965 with amerchant marine master and civilian crew. She arrived at theBoston Army Base piers, South Boston,Massachusetts , on1 December 1965 . inspection. "Passumpsic" departed Norfolk on11 March 1966 for her home port of Long Beach, California, arriving there on6 April 1966 . Final U.S. Navy acceptance came on24 August 1966 , and she was designated a ready unit under Commander Task Group 13.1 (CTG 13.1) on1 September 1966 .Operational History 1966-1973
"Passumpsic" departed Long Beach on
22 September 1966 and arrived atSubic Bay in thePhilippine Islands on15 October 1966 . From Subic Bay the oiler steamed on replenishment operations off the coasts ofNorth Vietnam andSouth Vietnam . She continued to service U.S. Navy units in the Western Pacific until May 1967, when she returned to her home port."Passumpsic" departed Long Beach in November 1967 for the Western Pacific and again operated from Subic Bay to serve ships operating in the
Vietnam War combat zone and making port visits betweenunderway replenishment assignments. She returned to Long Beach in June 1968.In November 1968 "Passumpsic" again deployed to the Western Pacific to operate out of Subic Bay in support of ships operating off of
Vietnam . She returned to Long Beach 27 June 1969 for yard availability, local training operations, and preparations for her next Western Pacific deployment."Passumpsic" remained in commissioned service with the U.S. Navy until 1973, although her activities between mid-1969 and 1973 are not readily available and await further research. [The Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships history of "Passumpsic" ends while she was still in commission in 1969 because of the date of publication of the original hard-copy volume of the dictionary and has not been updated, and the level of detail readily available about her later career is minimal at present.]
Decommissioning and Transfer
On
24 July 1973 , "Passumpsic" was decommissioned. She transferred to theMilitary Sealift Command on the same day, becomingUnited States Naval Ship USNS "Passumpsic" (T-AO-107). Under this new designation, she continued in service in support of the U.S. Navy with a civilian crew from 1975 until 1991.Battle Honors
USS "Passumpsic" received nine
battle stars for her Korean War service.Notes
References
Navbox
name = Ashtabula class fleet replenishment oiler
title = "Ashtabula"-class fleet replenishment oiler
list1 =
below =List of auxiliaries of the United States Navy
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