USS ''Steadfast'' (AFDM-14) (former ''YFD-71'') is a ''AFDM-14''-class

floating dry dock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...

built in 1945 and operated by the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

Construction and career

''YFD-71'' was built by the Pollock Shipbuilding Co., in Stockton,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in 1945. She would be commissioned later in 1945 after her delivery to the Navy on 1 July. In 1981, the dry dock was re-designated as AFDM-14. She would be given the name Steadfast later in 1984. On 1 April 1986,

USS Tuscaloosa (LST-1187) USS ''Tuscaloosa'' (LST-1187) was the ninth of the s of the United States Navy, which replaced the traditional bow door-design tank landing ships (LSTs). The vessel was constructed by the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company in San Diego, C ...

was seen dry docked inside ''Steadfast'' at

National Steel and Shipbuilding Company National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, commonly referred to as NASSCO, is an American shipbuilding company with four shipyards located in San Diego, Norfolk, Virginia, Norfolk, Bremerton, and Mayport (Jacksonville), Mayport. It is a division ...

. In February 1987, USS Bagley (FF-1069) traveled to

Concord Naval Weapons Station Concord Naval Weapons Station was a military base established in 1942 north of the city of Concord, California at the shore of the Sacramento River where it widens into Suisun Bay. The station functioned as a World War II armament storage de ...

where she unloaded ammunition before beginning a restricted availability at

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

on the 16th. The repair period lasted until early summer and included a seven-week drydocking in ''Steadfast'' that occupied most of April and all of May. In January 1992, USS Kinkaid (DD-965) was dry docked inside ''Steadfast''. On 15 March 1994,

USS Chandler (DDG-996) USS ''Chandler'' (DDG-996) was the final ship in the ''Kidd'' class of guided-missile destroyers operated by the U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It ...

began a six-month selected restricted availability at Continental Maritime in San Diego, which lasted from 15 March until 19 May in the floating dry dock ''Steadfast''. On 8 January 1996, ''Steadfast'' was dry docked at

Long Beach Naval Shipyard The Long Beach Naval Shipyard (Long Beach NSY or LBNSY), which closed in 1997, was located on Terminal Island between the city of Long Beach and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles, approximately 23 miles south of the Los Angeles Internationa ...

. ''Steadfast'' was decommissioned in 1998 and sold to BAE Systems Ship Repair

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, renamed Eureka. Struck from the

Naval Register A Navy Directory, Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a co ...

on 7 February 1999. In 2009,

SS Jeremiah O'Brien SS ''Jeremiah O'Brien'' is a Liberty ship built during World War II and named after the American Revolutionary War ship captain Jeremiah O'Brien (1744–1818). Now based in San Francisco, she is a rare survivorThe tugboat '' Nash'', another Nat ...

was dry docked inside ''Eureka'' at Pier 70. On 2 January 2017, the shipyard was sold to Puglia Engineering, Inc.

Awards

American Campaign Medal The American Campaign Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was first created on November 6, 1942, by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The medal was intended to recognize those military members who had per ...

World War II Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal was a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. Histo ...

National Defense Service Medal The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is a service award of the United States Armed Forces established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. It was awarded to every member of the U.S. Armed Forces who served during any one of four s ...

References

External links

NavSource: AFDM-14Naval Vessel Register: Steadfast (AFDM-14)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steadfast (AFDM-14) Cold War auxiliary ships of the United States World War II auxiliary ships of the United States Floating drydocks of the United States Navy 1945 ships Ships built in Stockton, California