Page 20: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (August 15, 1984)

U.S. Yards (continued from page 21) cently received an $ll.l-million contract to overhaul the USS Page; that work is slated to begin at the

Bath yard in September this year.

The Bath yard is also continuing to perform post shakedown avail- ability work on a number of its

FFGs, as well as a few built by

Todd Shipyards.

The mix of work had main- tained a total work force for both the Bath and Portland yards of some 7,000 at midyear, but BIW officials continue to cast a cautious eye toward the future.

Circle 29 on Reader Service Card

BETHLEHEM STEEL

The Marine Construction Group of Bethlehem Steel Corporation is currently reconstructing five ves- sels for the U.S. Navy's new Mar- itime Prepositioning Ship Pro- gram (T-AKX). Three of the ships are being converted at the Spar- rows Point yard near Baltimore, and the other two at the Beau- mont, Texas, facility. Total value of the contracts for the five vessels is more than $600 million.

The first T-AKX ship to be de- livered is the Cpl. Louis J. Hauge

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Jr., formerly the Estelle Maersk, which was reconstructed at Spar- rows Point. That vessel was deliv- ered in July of this year, one month ahead of schedule. The ship's name became official on July 14 when Mrs. Catherine Braun- schweig of Kent, Wash., sister of the World War II Medal of Honor winner for whom the vessel is named, performed the christening ceremony.

The Estelle Maersk, along with the four other Maersk RO/RO ves- sels, was selected in 1982 to be re- constructed by Bethlehem Steel because, with her redesign, she would be well suited to the prepo- sitioning ship mission. Each ship will be used for the mobile, long- term storage of vehicles, helicop- ters, weapons, ammunition, fuel, and other material to supply a

Marine Corps Amphibious Brigade.

To meet these mission require- ments, Bethlehem separated the vessel amidships, added a 157-foot- long midsection that extended her length to 755 feet. Her depth was changed with the addition of two new dock levels, increasing the keel-to-dock depth by nearly 16 feet, from 54 to 70 feet. This re- quired the alteration of three decks—first, main, and upper.

These expansions provided more cargo hold, space for a third set of twin 36-ton-capacity cranes, and an additional 80-person deckhouse for "surge" crews during periodic loading and unloading. The nor- mal crew complement will be about 65. Other major additions included new ramps, fuel tanks, repair shops, and an aft helicopter land- ing platform.

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COASTAL DRY DOCK

Coastal Dry Dock & Repair Cor- poration, located in New York at the former Brooklyn Naval Ship- yard, is currently overhauling two

U.S. Navy ships—the frigate USS

Pharris (FF-1094) and the de- stroyer USS Nicholson (DD-982).

In addition to these two combat- ants, the yard is working on the

Military Sealift Command's stores ship USNS Rigel (T-AF-58).

Within the past year Coastal has completed the regular over- haul of two frigates and one de- stroyer. These overhauls have in- cluded extensive electronics/ ordinance upgrades and consider- able machinery work.

The Brooklyn yard is expecting the USS Thorn (DD-988) in Feb- ruary 1985, which will complete the three-destroyer overhaul con- tract awarded in April 1983.

Coastal Dry Dock has estab- lished a reputation for the effi- cient overhaul of Naval combat- ants, and is currently soliciting additional Navy work. With the arrival of the Surface Action Group in the late 1980s, the yard is look- ing forward to working with the

Port of New York and the Navy to bring additional employment to the area.

Circle 28 on Reader Service Card 22 Circle 145 on Reader Service Card Maritime Reporter/Engineering News