MV ''Shughart'' (T-AKR-295) is the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships that are all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very comple ...

of her class of cargo ships 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 ...

. She is a '

roll-on roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or usi ...

' non-combat vessel designated as a " Large, Medium-Speed Roll-on/Roll-off" (LMSR) ship.

History

She was originally the ''Laura Maersk'', constructed in 1980 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 ...

by ''

Lindøværftet Odense Steel Shipyard () was a Danish shipyard company located in Odense. It was best known for building container ships for its parent group, A.P. Moller – Maersk Group, including the Mærsk E class in 2006 which at the time were the bigge ...

'' for A. P. Moller-Maersk Group (''Maersk''). She was lengthened in 1987 and again in the early 1990s by

Hyundai Hyundai is a former South Korean industrial conglomerate ("''chaebol''"), which was restructured into the following groups: * Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested ** Hyundai Asan, a real estate construction ...

. On 7 May 1996 ''Laura Maersk'' was delivered to

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 ...

and was outfitted at the

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 ...

's docks in

San Diego, California 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 ...

. Operated by Bay Ship Management, the newly renovated ship was renamed USNS ''Shughart'', in honor of

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 US Army Sergeant First Class

Randall D. Shughart Randall David Shughart (August 13, 1958 – October 3, 1993) was a United States Army Delta Force operator who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Mogadishu, during Operation Gothic Serpent in O ...

. Senator Bob Kerrey of Nebraska was the ceremony's principal speaker and serving as the ship's sponsor was Mrs. Stephanie Shughart, Sergeant Shughart's widow. The ''Shughart'' remains under the charter of the US Navy Military Sealift Command and is operated by US Merchant Mariners. ''Shughart'', along with others in her class, is capable of carrying 58 tanks, 48 other track vehicles, plus more than 900 trucks and other wheeled vehicles. To manipulate the cargo capacity, ''Shughart'' utilizes two 110-ton cranes, port and starboard ramps, and a stern ramp. The ship was transferred to 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 ...

in March 2022 and became part of the

Beaumont Reserve Fleet The Beaumont Reserve Fleet, was established by act of Congress in 1946, as a component of the National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF). The fleet is located in Beaumont, Texas, Beaumont, Texas. History In 1946, the US Government excavated 24 million ...

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 ...

as MV ''Shughart'' (T-AKR-295), losing her USNS designation. She was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 21 March 2023.

USNS Yano USNS ''Yano'' (T-AKR-297) was originally constructed as the container ship ''Leise Maersk'' in 1980. In 1987, the ship was lengthened and again in the 1990s before it was purchased by the United States Navy. When the transfer was complete, the s ...

former Leise Maersk
USNS GySgt. Fred W. Stockham former Lica Maersk

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shughart (T-AKR-295) Shughart-class cargo ships 1980 ships Ships built in Odense