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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive


Left patch contributed by Tommy Trampp, center and right patches contributed by Mike Smolinski

USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20)
ex
Johnstown (AGM-20) (1965)
USNS Mission De Pala (T-AO-114) (1949 - 1958)
Mission De Pala (AO-114) (1947 - 1949)

USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) Assigned International Radio Call Sign:
November - Juliet - Alpha - Xray
NJAX

USNS Mission De Pala (T-AO-114) Assigned International Radio Call Sign:
November - Hotel - November - Papa
NHNP
Redstone (T-AGM-2) - Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from left to right
Navy Battle "E" Ribbon (3) - National Defense Service Medal


Mission Buenaventura Class Fleet Oiler:
  • Laid down, 26 November 1943, as a Maritime Commission type (T-2-SE-A2) tanker hull, under Maritime Commission contract, (MC 1280) at Marinship Corp., Sausalito, CA.
  • Launched, 28 February 1944
  • Chartered to Pacific Tankers Inc., 22 April 1944, for operations
  • Returned to the Maritime Commission, 28 May 1946, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, AL.
  • Acquired by the Navy 22 October 1947, designated Mission De Pala (AO-114) and placed in service by the Naval Transportation Service
  • Administrative transfer to MSTS, 1 October 1949 and placed in service as USNS Mission De Pala (T-AO-114)
  • Place out of service and returned to th Maritime Commission, 23 December 1949, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Orange, TX.
  • Reacquired by the Navy, and placed in service with MSTS, 21 July 1950
  • Placed out of service and returned to the Maritime Administration, 15 November 1954, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River, Fort Eustis, VA.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 22 June 1955
  • Reacquired by the Navy, 6 July 1956, and placed in service with MSTS, operated under charter by Marine Transport Lines, Inc.
  • Placed out of service 13 March 1958,and returned to the Maritime Administration for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Orange, TX.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 13 March 1958
  • Reacquired by the Navy, 19 September 1964, for conversion to a Vanguard Class Range Instrumentation Ship at General Dynamics Co., Quincy, MA.
  • Renamed and redesignated Johnstown (AGM-20), 8 April 1965
  • Renamed Redstone , 1 September 1965
  • Accepted and placed in service by MSTS as USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20), 30 June 1966
  • Placed out of service, 6 August 1993
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 7 December 1993
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 30 January 1995
    AO 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 Source
    War Shipping Administration
    Redstone
    09532016
    42k
    Namesake
    Mission De Paul (San Antonio de Pala Asistencia, or the "Pala Mission"), was founded on June 13, 1816 as an asistencia ("sub-mission") to Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, some twenty miles inland upstream from the latter mission on the San Luis Rey River. Pala Mission was part of the Spanish missions, asistencias, and estancias system in Las Californias—Alta California. Today it is located in the Pala Indian Reservation located in northern San Diego County, with the official name of Mission San Antonio de Pala. It is the only historic mission facility still serving a Mission Indian tribe. Wikipedia)
    Pala Mission, circa 1875
    Tommy Trampp
    Redstone 186k SS Mission De Pala on the builders ways at Marinship Corp., Sausalito, CA., circa December 1943.
    US Maritime Commission photo courtesy Auke Visser's Famous T - Tankers Pages.
    Robert Hurst
    Redstone 88k SS Mission De Pala fitting out at Marinship Corp., Sausalito CA., circa April 1944
    US Maritime Commission photo courtesy Auke Visser's Famous T - Tankers Pages.
    Robert Hurst
    USS Mission De Pala (T-AO-114)
    Redstone 100k Mission De Pala (AO-114), during conversion at Quincy, MA. shipyard to a Missile Range Instrumentation Ship Dan Kovalchik
    Johnstown (AGM-20)
    Redstone
    09532019
    228k
    Namesake
    Johnstown - Johnstown is the largest city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania. Settled in 1770. The city has experienced three major floods in its history. The Johnstown Flood of May 31, 1889, when east 2,209 people died as a result of the flood and subsequent fire that raged through the debris. The second and third major floods occurred in 1936 and 1977.
    Photo - View from from atop the Johnstown Inclined Plane platform by Darthgriz98 (real name unknown), licenened under Creative Commons by-SA 3.0 DEED Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported
    Tommy Trampp
    Redstone 141k Mission De Pala (AO-114), nearing completion at Quincy, MA. shipyard to Missile Range Instrumentation Ship USNS Johnstown (AGM-20) Dan Kovalchik
    USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20)
    Redstone
    09532018
    48k
    Namesake
    Redstone - Redstone Arsenal is a United States Army base adjacent to Huntsville, Alabama
    Photo - Redstone Arsenal, Gate 9, by American Diabetio (real name unknown) licenened under Creative Commons BY-SA 4.0 DEED Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
    Tommy Trampp
    Redstone
    09532022
    918k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) looking aft, while at the General Dynamics Co., Quincy, MA., 27 August 1965.
    US National Archives and Records Administration Identifier NAID: 6930245, Local ID: 19-NN-AGM-21 Apollo Instrument.
    Robert Hurst
    Redstone
    09532021
    717k Stern view starboard side of USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) underway near General Dynamics Shipyard, Quincym MA., 4 June 1967.
    National Archives; ID 6930233 Records, Department of Defense. Department of the Navy. Bureau of Ships
    John Spivey
    Redstone 95k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) underway, date and location unknown. Robert Hurst
    Redstone
    09532020
    185k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) Satellite Communications Room, 17 August 1967.
    National Archives; ID 6930231; Records, Department of Defense. Department of the Navy. Bureau of Ships
    Tommy Trampp
    Redstone 79k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) moored pierside, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from "All Hands" magazine, October 1982
    Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.
    Redstone 83k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) under way, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo.
    Robert Hurst
    Redstone 62k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) moored pierside, Port Canaveral, FL circa 1970-73.
    US Navy photo
    Federation of American Scientists web site
    Redstone 141k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) underway, date and location unknown. Dan Kovalchik
    Redstone 98k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) off the coast of Florida in September 1984 after the launch of the space shuttle "Atlantis". Photo by Bill Fessenden
    Redstone 76k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo.
    Robert Hurst
    Redstone 104k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) underway, off the coast of Florida, date unknown. Tommy Trampp
    Redstone
    09532017
    226k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) underway, date and location unknown. Nicholas Tiberio
    Redstone 85k USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo.
    Robert Hurst
    Redstone
    09532023
    1768k Starboard bow view of USNS Redstone (T-AGM-20) moored to a pier near the Kennedy Space Center, FL., 1 December 1991.
    US Navy photo byOS2 John Bouvia, US National Archives and Records Adminstration Identifier NAID: 6475568, Local ID: 330-CFD-DN-SC-92-04615
    Robert Hurst
    Caloosahatchee 434k Aerial view of Unit 7 of the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River Group, Lee Hall, VA., 28 January 1999. From bottom to top;
    unidentified,
    Santa Cruz
    Vulcan (AR-5),
    Redstone (T-AGM-20),
    2 unidentified APs,
    General Nelson M. Walter (T-AP-125),
    General William. O. Darby (IX-510),
    Waccamaw (T-AO-109),
    Canisteo (AO-99),
    Caloosahatchee (AO-98),
    Mississinewa (T-AO-144),
    Pawcatuck (T-AO-108),
    Truckee (T-AO-147),
    Neosho (T-AO-143),
    Benjamin Isherwood (T-AO-191) and
    Henry Eckford (T-AO-192). These two oilers were both lay-berthed incomplete.
     

    USNS Mission De Pala (T-AO-114) / Johnstown / Redstone (T-AGM-20)
    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
    Mission De Pala - MARAD Vessel History Database
    Redstone - MARAD Vessel History Database
    Back To The Main Photo Index Back To The Service Force Ship Type Index Back To The Fleet Oiler (AO) Photo Index Back To The Range Instrumentation Ship (AGM) Photo Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster.
    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 29 November 2024