- USS Rio Grande (AOG-3)
USS "Rio Grande" (AOG-3) was a "Patapsco"-class gasoline tanker acquired by the
U.S. Navy for the dangerous task of transporting gasoline to warships in the fleet, and to remote Navy stations.Gasoline tanker "Rio Grande" was laid down
30 June 1942 bySeattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Co.,Seattle, Washington ; launched23 September 1942 ; sponsored by Mrs. R. D. Kirkpatrick; and commissioned10 April 1943 , Lt. Comdr. Lawrence J. Hasse,USNR , in command.World War II service
Following shakedown "Rio Grande" was assigned to the
U.S. Pacific Fleet as a unit of the mobile support group and carriedpetroleum products to help provide the lifeline of fuel for the fighting ships of the fleet in their advance toward Japan. After the end ofWorld War II , she continued to operate withService Force, Pacific Fleet until she decommissioned28 June 1946 .Post-war activity
In April
1948 , she was transferred toNorfolk, Virginia , and placed in theAtlantic Reserve Fleet .Reactivated during the Korean crisis
"Rio Grande" recommissioned
12 October 1950 , Lt. Milton L. Elchinger in command. Early the next year she resumed her mission of providing petroleum logistic support in the mid-Pacific. In September1952 she began 7 months of service in the western Pacific, supplying gasoline anddiesel oil toUnited Nations forces in Japan andKorea , with an occasional run toFrench Indochina . She returned toPearl Harbor in May1953 and resumed her fueling duties there. The following March she sailed forAlaska n waters and 7 weeks of service transporting fuel betweenShemya Island and the Alaskan mainland before returning to the mid-Pacific.Decommissioning
"Rio Grande" decommissioned at
San Diego, California ,6 January 1956 . On30 June 1960 she entered theMaritime Administration Reserve Fleet atPuget Sound ,Olympia, Washington , where she remained until sold for scrapping on7 February 1972 to General Metals,Tacoma, Washington .Military awards and honors
"Rio Grande’s" Navy crew members were eligible for the following medals:
*China Service Medal (extended)
*American Campaign Medal
*Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
*World War II Victory Medal
*Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
*National Defense Service Medal
*Korean Service Medal
*United Nations Service Medal
*Republic of Korea War Service Medal (retroactive)References
See also
*
List of United States Navy ships
*World War II External links
* [http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/#Anchor-Editoria-14954 Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships]
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/20/2003.htm NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - AOG-3 Rio Grande]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.