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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive
Contributed by Ramon Jackson

USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - November - Uniform - Delta
 NNUD
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from left to right
Navy Battle "E" Ribbon - National Defense Service Medal

USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) was transferred to Turkey renamed TCG Çes,me (A-599)
Silas Bent Class Hydrographic Survey Ship:
  • Laid down, 2 March 1964, at American Shipbuilding Corp, Cleveland, OH.
  • Launched, 15 May 1964
  • Delivered to the Navy, 23 July 1965
  • Placed in service with the Military Sealift Command (MSC) as USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26)
  • Placed out of service, (date unknown)
  • Transferred to Turkey, 29 September 1999, renamed TCG Çes,me (A-599)
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 28 October 1999
  • Current Disposition, active Turkish Navy
    Specifications:
    Displacement 1,935 t.(lt) 2,580 t.(fl)
    Length 285' 3"
    Beam 48'
    Draft 15
    Speed 15 kts.
    Complement
    44 crew
    26 scientific party
    Propulsion
    ALCO Diesels
    Allis-Chalmers electric drive
    single propeller SHP approx.3000
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Source
    USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26)
    Silas Bent 35k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) launching, 15 May 1964, at American Shipbuilding Corp., Cleveland, OH.
    US Navy photo from a Japanese language open house brochure     		Ramon Jackson
    Silas Bent 85k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) on builders trials, July 1965
    US Navy photo from DANFS.    		 Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.
    Silas Bent
    09102620    		 158k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) underway on builders trials, 7 July 1965.
    U.S. Navy Bureau of Ships photo 19-NN-AGS-26 Silas Bent-171200. This image is available in the holdings of the National Archives and Records Administration, cataloged under the National Archives Identifier (NAID) ) 6931017    		 Robert Hurst
    Silas Bent 56k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) moored to a buoy, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo    		 Federation of American Scientists web site
    Silas Bent 81k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) under way, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo    		 Federation of American Scientists web site
    Silas Bent 104k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) overhead view, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from a Japanese language open house brochure     		Ramon Jackson
    Silas Bent 86k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) pierside, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from a Japanese language open house brochure     		Ramon Jackson
    Silas Bent 56k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) on the Anacostia River, Washington, DC. Note the South Capitol Street Bridge in the background.
    US Navy photo from a Japanese language open house brochure     		Ramon Jackson
    Silas Bent 89k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) under tow by USS Wandank (ATA-204) enroute to Guam, circa 1967-68. Photo by Eli Blanco RM3 USS Wandank
    Silas Bent 69k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) under way, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from DANFS.    		 Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.
    Silas Bent 102k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) under way, date and location unknown.
    US Navy Military Sea Transportation Service photo.    		 Robert Hurst
    Silas Bent 167k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) at sea, date and location unknown.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command PHoto # NH 79138.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Silas Bent 209k USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) at sea, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo.    		 Robert Hurst
    TCG Çes,me (A-599)
    Silas Bent 342k Ex-USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) in Turkish naval service as TCG Çes,me (A-599) underway, date and location unknown. Yucel M. Umar GMC Turkish Navy Retired
    Silas Bent 129k TCG Çes,me (A-599) underway, date and location unknown. Yucel M. Umar GMC Turkish Navy Retired
    Silas Bent
    09102619    		 194k TCG Çes,me (A-599) tied up to a buoy, off the Bosphorus coast of Turkey, 9 August 2008.
    Photo courtesy access.denied (real name unknown). This image was originally posted to Flickr by access.denied at https://www.flickr.com/photos/28668451@N00/2956675844 This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0.    		 Robert Hurst
    Silas Bent 608k TCG Çes,me (A-599) northbound in the Bosporous Straits, 9 May 2011. Photo by John Skillman
    USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    Silas Bent (T-AGS-26)
    "Silas Bent Introduction Brochure" (1966)
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 26 January 2024