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SS Algol
American cargo ship / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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SS Algol (T-AKR 287) is an Algol-class vehicle cargo ship that is currently maintained by the United States Maritime Administration as part of the Military Sealift Command's Ready Reserve Force. She was built as a high speed container ship by Rotterdamsche Droogdok Maatschappij N.V. in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, hull no. 331, for Sea-Land Service, Inc. and named SS Sea-Land Exchange, USCG ON 546383, IMO 7303205.[1][2] Due to her high operating cost, Sea-Land Exchange was sold to the United States Navy in October 1981 as USNS Algol (T-AK-287).[3]
![]() USNS Algol (T-AKR-287) in Antwerp, Belgium. | |
History | |
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Name | Algol |
Namesake | Algol |
Owner | United States Maritime Administration |
Builder | Rotterdamsche Droogdok Maatschappij N.V |
Laid down | 1 November 1971 |
Launched | 1 September 1972 |
Acquired | October 1981 |
Identification |
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Honors and awards | |
Status | Ready Reserve |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Algol-class vehicle cargo ship |
Displacement | 55,355 tons (full) |
Length | 946 ft 2 in (288 m) |
Beam | 105 ft 6 in (32 m) |
Draft | 36 ft 7 in (11 m) |
Propulsion |
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Speed | 33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph) |
Capacity | 700+ military vehicles (including trucks, tanks, and helicopters) |
Crew | 43 civilians, 12 military technicians (fully operational), 18 civilians (reduced operating status) |
Aviation facilities | Landing pad |
In keeping with the pattern of the naming the Algol-class ships after bright stars, Algol was named after the bright eclipsing binary star Algol, known colloquially as the Demon Star, which is a bright star in the constellation Perseus.