MV ''Gary I. Gordon'', formerly USNS ''Gordon'' (T-AKR-296), is a ''Gordon''-class Large, Medium-Speed Roll-on/Roll-off vehicle cargo ship of 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 ...

. She was originally built as a merchant vessel, acquired and converted by the Navy, and was assigned to the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and superv ...

Military Sealift Command The Military Sealift Command (MSC) is an organization that controls the replenishment and military transport ships of the United States Navy. Military Sealift Command has the responsibility for providing sealift and ocean transportation for all U ...

. As of April 2023, the ship was part of the

United States Maritime Administration The United States Maritime Administration (MARAD) is an Government agency#United States, agency of the United States Department of Transportation. MARAD administers financial programs to develop, promote, and operate the United States Maritime ...

(MARAD)

Ready Reserve Force The National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF) consists of ships of the United States, mostly merchant vessels, that have been mothballed but can be activated within 20 to 120 days to provide shipping during national military emergencies, or non-mil ...

(RRF). ''Gordon'' was built in

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

in 1972 as MV ''Jutlandia'', and entered commercial service on 1 June 1973. After some time spent in commercial service she was lengthened by

Hyundai Heavy Industries HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (HHI; ) is the world's largest shipbuilding company and a major heavy equipment manufacturer. Its headquarters are in Ulsan, South Korea. History HHI was founded in 1972 by Chung Ju-yung as a division ...

in 1984, and later went on to be acquired by the US Navy under a long-term charter. She was converted to a US Navy Vehicle Roll-on/Roll-off Ship at

Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS), a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, is the sole designer, builder, and refueler of aircraft carriers and one of two providers of submarines for the United States Navy. Founded as the Chesapeake Dry Dock ...

and on delivery to the Navy was assigned to the

on 23 August 1996 under the name USNS ''Gordon'', after

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

recipient Master Sergeant

Gary Gordon Gary Ivan Gordon (August 30, 1960 – October 3, 1993) was a master sergeant in the United States Army and a recipient of the Medal of Honor. At the time of his death in the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993, he was a non-commissioned officer in ...

. ''Gordon'' was one of 28 Strategic Sealift Ships operated by the Military Sealift Command. She was assigned to the MSC Atlantic surge force and was maintained at

Canton, Baltimore Canton is a historic waterfront neighborhood in Baltimore, Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The neighborhood is along Baltimore's outer harbor in the southeastern section of the city, roughly east of Downtown Baltimore, Baltimore's ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

in Reduced Operational Status 4, meaning she can be on her way to pick up cargo within 4 days of notification. On 26 April 2023, ''Gordon'' was stricken from the

Naval Vessel Register The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from t ...

. The same day, ''Gordon'' was transferred to the

(MARAD)

(RRF) and renamed ''Gary I. Gordon'' also losing the USNS designation. If activated, ''Gary I. Gordon'' will report to the

and change her prefix designation from MV to USNS. ''Gary I. Gordon'' is maintained in a reduced operating status and the crew is provided by commercial companies under contract to MARAD. As of March 2024, ''Gary I. Gordon'' resided in Baltimore harbor.

References

External links

MV ''Gary I. Gordon'' page of the MARAD vessel history database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gary I. Gordon Gordon-class vehicle cargo ships 1972 ships Ships built by Hyundai Heavy Industries Group