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USNS Mission San Luis Rey (T-AO-128)
ex
 Mission San Luis Rey (AO-128) (1947 - 1949)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Hotel - Quebec - Bravo
 NHQB
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

National Defense Service Medal
Mission Buenaventura Class Fleet Oiler:
  • Laid down, 15 October 1943, as a Maritime Commission type (T2-SE-A2) tanker hull under Maritime Commission contract (MC 1278) at Marinship Corp., Sausalito, CA.
  • Launched, 29 January 1944
  • Delivered to the Maritime Commission, 31 March 1944, for charter to Pacific Tankers, Inc., for operations
  • Returned to the Maritime Commission, 26 March 1946, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River Group, Lee Hall, VA.
  • Acquired by the Navy, 23 October 1947
  • Placed in service by the Naval Transportation Service (NTS) as Mission San Luis Rey (AO-128)
  • Transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS), 1 October 1949, and placed in service as USNS Mission San Luis Rey (T-AO-128)
  • Placed out of service, 6 May 1955, and returned to the Maritime Administration for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, Benecia, CA.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 22 June 1955
  • Reacquired by the Navy, 22 June 1956 and placed in service with MSTS
  • Placed out of service, struck from the Naval Register and returned to the Maritime Administration for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Beaumont, TX., 19 November 1957
  • Final disposition, sold for scrapping, 7 November 1972, to Luria Bros. and Co., (PD-X-949 dtd 5 October 1972) for $103.133p.00. Physically delivered, 18 December 1972
    Specifications:
    Displacement 5,532 t.(lt) 21,880 t.(fl)
    Length 523' 6"
    Beam 68'
    Draft 30' 10"
    Speed 15.1 kts (trial)
    Complement
    52 CivMar
    17 US Navy Armed Guard
    Armament
    one single 5"/38 dual purpose gun mount
    four single 3"/50 dual purpose gun mounts
    four twin 40mm AA gun mounts
    four twin 20mm AA gun mounts
    Cargo Capacity 15,300DWT
    Oil 120,400 Bbls
    Gasoline 575,000 Gals
    Fuel Capacity NSFO 9,235 Bbls
    Propulsion
    one General Electric turbo-electric engine
    two Babcock and Wilcox D-type boilers, 600psi 825°

    Ship's Service Generators
     two turbo-drive 400Kw 450V A.C.
     two turbo-drive 85Kw 120V D.C.
     two turbo-drive 55Kw 120V D.C.
     one turbo-drive 50Kw 450V A.C.
    single propeller, 10,000shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    Mission San Luis Rey (War Shipping Administration)
    Mission San Luis Rey
    091912805    		 244k
    Namesake
    Mission San Luis Rey - is a former Spanish mission in San Luis Rey, a neighborhood of Oceanside, CA. This Mission lent its name to the Luiseño tribe of Mission Indians. The full name of the mission is La Misión de San Luis, Rey de Francia (The Mission of Saint Louis, King of France). It was named for King Louis IX of France. Its nickname is "King of the Missions" It was founded by padre Fermín Lasuén on June 12, 1798, the eighteenth of the twenty-one Spanish missions built in the Alta California Province of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. (Wikipedia)
    Photo of Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, 6 August 2005 by ©User:Geographer.    		 Tommy Trampp
    Mission San Luis Rey
    14 days after keel laying    		 176k Building progress photos Mission San Luis Rey on the builder's way #6 at Marinship, Sausalito, CA.
    US Maritime Commission photos by by Marinship courtesy Auke Visser's Famous T - Tankers Pages.    		 Robert Hurst
    Mission San Luis Rey
    42 days after keel laying    		 192k
    Mission San Luis Rey
    62 days after keel laying    		 201k
    Mission San Luis Rey
    091912806    		 228k SS Mission San Luis Rey being preparing for postwar layup in the Maritime Commission's reserve fleet at Lee Hall, VA., March 1946. She had been operated for the War Shipping Administration since March 1944 by Pacific Tankers Inc. The position for a 3"/50 gun on the forecastle, now empty, was removed from all ships of this class at this time, but some ships retained the empty 5"/38 gun position on the stern and some 20mm gun tubs. This photo was published in MSTS Magazine in January 1960.
    U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command (MSC). Photo No. Unknown    		 Robert Hurst
    USNS Mission San Luis Rey (T-AO-128)
    Mission San Luis Rey 128k USNS Mission San Luis Rey (T-AO-128) at anchor in the Long Beach/San Pedro area, date unknown. Photo by Dick Markell. David Buell
    USNS Mission San Luis Rey (T-AO-128)
    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
    MARAD Vessel History Data Base
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 21 June 2024