Wichita-class replenishment oiler

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Commercial harbor tugs maneuver the replenishment oiler USS KALAMAZOO (AOR-6) toward the dock as the vessel returns to Norfolk from deployment in the Persian Gulf area during Operat - DPLA - e97387b07931e72c4ea1f29627808fbe.jpeg
USS Kalamazoo on 1 April 1991
Class overview
NameWichita
Builders
OperatorsFlag of the United States Navy (official).svg  United States Navy
Preceded by
Succeeded by
In commission1969–1995
Planned7
Completed7
Retired7
General characteristics
Type replenishment oiler
Displacement
  • 13,533 tons empty,
  • 40,151 tons full
  • 26,618 dwt
Length640 ft (195 m) wl; 659 ft (201 m) oa
Beam96 ft (29 m)
Draft35 ft (10.6 m)
Propulsion
  • 3 × boilers, 2 × steam turbines,
  • 2 × shafts, 32,000 SHP (24 MW)
Speed20 knots [1]
Complement34 officers, 463 men
Armament
Aircraft carried2 × UH-46 Sea Knight helicopters

Wichita-class replenishment oilers comprised a class of seven replenishment oilers used by the United States Navy from the late 1960s to the mid-1990s. The ships were designed for rapid underway replenishment using both connected replenishment and vertical replenishment.

Contents

Design

Kalamazoo replenishing USS Nimitz and USS Josephus Daniels, in 1987. USS Nimitz (CVN-68) underway replenishment.jpg
Kalamazoo replenishing USS Nimitz and USS Josephus Daniels, in 1987.

The original concept for the Wichita-class was that the ships would serve the same function for the anti-submarine carrier (CVS) groups that the larger, faster Sacramento-class ships did for the attack carrier (CVA) groups. During this time the ships were commissioned naval auxiliaries with the hull classification AOR.

The ships could carry 160,000 barrels (25,438,000 litres) of fuel oil (DFM) and/or jet fuel (JP5), 600 tons of munitions, 200 tons of dry stores and 100 tons of refrigerated stores. To transfer cargo, the ships were equipped with four fueling stations and two cargo handling stations on the port side and three fueling stations and two cargo handling stations on the starboard side. [2] As built the port forward fuel station and associated tanks were for aviation gasoline (AVGAS), but were converted after the retirement of the Navy's last piston-engined aircraft. Originally, the first six ships only had a large helicopter landing deck aft, but no hangar. Roanoke was the first ship equipped with a large double hangar for two UH-46 Sea Knight helicopters. The hangar was later retrofitted to the other ships.

With the addition of the hangar, the ships lost the originally fitted 3"/50 caliber gun twin mounts that were located abaft the stack. In the 1980s, a Mk 29 launcher for the NATO Sea Sparrow was fitted atop the hangar, and two Phalanx CIWS were added. [3]

General Dynamics, Quincy originally encountered problems during the construction, before the production was rationalised. Wichita took 24 months from keel laying to launch, Milwaukee 21 month, and Kansas City only 14 months. [4]

With the reduction in the U.S. Navy fleet, these ships were all decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register (NVR) in the 1990s.

Ships in class

Traditionally Navy oilers have been named for rivers; the Wichita class were named for city/river pairs with Native American names.

ShipHull No.BuilderHome PortCommissioned–
Decommissioned
FateNVR page
Wichita AOR-1 General Dynamics, Quincy Oakland 1969–1993scrapped, 2013 AOR-1
Milwaukee AOR-2General Dynamics, Quincy Norfolk 1969–1994scrapped, 2009 AOR-2
Kansas City AOR-3General Dynamics, QuincyOakland1970–1994scrapped, 2014 AOR-3
Savannah AOR-4General Dynamics, QuincyNorfolk1970–1995scrapped, 2009 AOR-4
Wabash AOR-5General Dynamics, Quincy Long Beach 1971–1994scrapped, 2013 AOR-5
Kalamazoo AOR-6General Dynamics, QuincyNorfolk1973–1996scrapped, 2009 AOR-6
Roanoke AOR-7 National Steel Long Beach1976–1995scrapped, 2013 AOR-7

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References

  1. Capt. John E. Moore, R.N., ed. (1979). Jane's Fighting Ships 1979-80. Jane's Publishing Group. p. 727. ISBN   0531039137.
  2. GlobalSecurity.org: AOR-1 Wichita
  3. FAS Military Analysis Network: AOR-1 Wichita
  4. Terzibaschitsch, Stefan (1997). Seemacht USA [Sea Power USA] (in German). Germany: Bechtermünz Verlag, Augsburg. ISBN   3-86047-576-2., p. 464-651