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{Short description|Class of US Navy cargo ship}}

Greeneville Victory during the evacuation of Phan Rang, 4 April 1975
Class overview
Name	Greenville Victory class
Builders	California Shipbuilding Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation Permanente Metals
Preceded by	Boulder Victory-class cargo ship & Liberty ships
Built	1944–1945
In commission	1948 – 1970
Completed	9
Lost	0
General characteristics
Class and type	Greenville Victory class
Tonnage	7,607 GRT
Displacement	4,480 long tons (4,550 t) (standard) 15,580 long tons (15,830 t) (full load)
Length	455 ft (139 m)
Beam	62 ft (19 m)
Draft	29 ft 2 in (8.89 m)
Installed power	2 × Babcock & Wilcox header-type boilers, 525psi 750° 6,000 shp (4,500 kW)
Propulsion	1 × Westinghouse turbine double Westinghouse Main Reduction Gears 1 × shaft
Speed	15.5 kn (17.8 mph; 28.7 km/h)
Capacity	7,800 t (7,700 long tons) DWT 453,210 cu ft (12,833 m) (non-refrigerated)
Complement	99 officers and enlisted
Armament	1 × 5 in (127 mm)/38-caliber dual-purpose gun 1 × 3 in (76 mm)/50-caliber dual-purpose gun 8 × 20 mm (0.8 in) Oerlikon cannons anti-aircraft (AA) mounts

Greenville Victory Class cargo ships were used for cargo shipping durning the Korean War by the United States Navy. Greenville Victory Class cargo ships were built for use during World War II. TheGreenville Victory Class cargo is the same as the Victory class cargo ship built of the World War II United States Merchant Navy. A total of 9 Greenville Victory Class cargo ships were built in 1944 and 1945. The ships were built under the Emergency Shipbuilding program for the War Shipping Administration fro World War II. Some of the Greenville Victory Class cargo ships were launched as merchant ship Victory ships and then acquired by the United States Navy for the Korean war effort. The lead ship in the class the, USNS Greenville Victory was commissioned on 30 March 1948. The Greenville Victory build was complete on 7 July 1944, she tok part in Battle of Okinawa. In Okinawa from 27 May 1945 to 19 June 1945 as a merchant ship. Some of the Greenville Victory Class cargo ships also Vietnam War, 21 years after construction. Some of the Greenville Victory Class cargo ships were acquired by the United States Army and used in the U.S. Army Transportation Service.

Ships in class

A total of 9 Greenville Victory Class cargo ships were built and commissioned: Helocopter-Landing-on-USNS-Longview-July-1966.png|Helocopter Landing on USNS Longview in -July 1966

• USS Altair (AK-257), built as SS Aberdeen Victory, scrapped in 1975 after US Navy service and merchant ship service and General stores issue ship service.
• USNS Private John R. Towle (T-AK-240), built as SS Appleton Victory, scrapped in 1982 after U.S. Army Transportation Service, US Navy service and merchant ship service.
• USS Betelgeuse (AK-260), built as SS Colombia Victory, scrapped in 1976 after merchant ship service and Military Sea Transportation Service.
• USNS Dalton Victory (T-AK-256) / Sunnyvale, scrapped in 1975 after U.S. Army Transportation Service, US Navy service and merchant ship service.
• USNS Greenville Victory (T-AK-237) scrapped in 1983 after U.S. Army Transportation Service, Military Sea Transportation Service and merchant ship service.
• USNS Haiti Victory (T-AK-238) / Longview, scrapped in 1976 after merchant ship service, U.S. Army Transportation Service, and Military Sea Transportation Service.<
• USNS Kingsport Victory (T-AK-239) / Kingsport, scrapped in 1992 after merchant ship service, U.S. Army Transportation Service, Military Sea Transportation Service and Miscellaneous Auxiliary ship servive.
• USS Antares (AK-258), built as Nampa Victory, scrapped in 1992 1974 after merchant ship service, US Navy cargo and US Navy Stores Issue Ship.
• USS Alcor (AK-259), built as Rockland Victory, scrapped in 1970 after merchant ship service, US Navy cargo ship service

Design

Victory ships replace the numerous built Liberty ships. Victory ship/Greenville Victory Class cargo are fast and better built than the Liberty ship, with a top speed of 15–17 knots (28–31 km/h; 17–20 mph). Liberty ships had a top speed of only 11–11.5 knots (20.4–21.3 km/h; 12.7–13.2 mph). Victory ships had more powerful steam turbine engines compared to the Liberty ship's triple-expansion steam engine. Victory ships are also slightly larger than the Liberty ships. Both Liberty ships and Greenville Victory ships have large hatches on the holds, and kingpost with large capacity booms cranes. This allowed the ship to unload and load without a dock crane. Most of the Greenville Victory Class cargo ships were upgrade to have a Helicopter deck, helicopter add to the stern deck in place of the orginal dual-purpose gun. Some ships have a 2 × hangar on the read deck to protect the helicopter from bad weather. Advnaced radar was also added. The 50-caliber dual-purpose guns were replace by four or eight 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors antiaircraft guns.

Builders

• Two built by Permanente Metals at Richmond Shipyards in Richmond, California.
• Four built by Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation in Portland, Oregon
• Three built by California Shipbuilding at Terminal Island in Los Angeles, California.
• Other shipyards built Merchant Victory ships.

Crew

Greenville Victory Class cargo ships were crewed by 99 to 145 officers and enlisted. This included: Captain, Executive Officer (XO),radioman, Signalman, Radar operator, Navigation officer, Engineering officer, Deckhands, Chefs, and Stewards, Boatswain's Mate (BM), and Quartermasters, Gunners and Fire controlman for the one stern 5 in (127 mm)/38-caliber dual-purpose gun; the one bow 3 in (76 mm)/50-caliber dual-purpose gun and the eight 20 mm (0.8 in) Oerlikon cannons anti-aircraft (AA) guns.

Gallery

• USNS Red Oak Victory (T-AK-235) built as SS Red Oak Victory now a Museum Ship at Richmond, California
• USS Altair (AKS-32) underway in 1966. From the appearance of her decks and helicopter landing pad, aft, she is ready to commence an underway replenishment
• USS Alcor (AK-259) in 1952
• USS Dalton Victory (T-AK-256)
• USNS Private John R. Towle (T-AK-240) underway in pack ice near Antarctica
• USS Proteus (AS-19) and Betelgeuse (AK-260) at Holy Loch
• USNS Haiti Victory (T-AK-238)
• A Mk 21 5"/38 caliber open pedestal mount like the one on the stern of a Greenville Victory Class cargo ship.
• A 3 in (76 mm)/50-caliber dual-purpose gun like the one on the bow of a Greenville Victory Class cargo ship.
• Greenville Victory-class cargo ship superstructure and center boom cranes
• Looking downon the engine room of a oulder Victory-class cargo ship
• Victory ship Starboard side
• Betelgeuse experimentally Reserve fleet mothballed
• USNS Kingsport (T-AG 164) under way, 29 January 1963. The photo shows the 53-foot white plastic dome that protects the 30-foot stabilized parabolic antenna.

See also

• List of auxiliaries of the United States Navy
• Empire ships
• Liberty ship
• List of Victory ships
• T2 tanker
• Type C1 ship
• Type C2 ship
• Type C3 ship

References

1. Navsource 2013. sfn error: no target: CITEREFNavsource2013 (help)
2. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130237.htm
3. ^ Culver, John A., CAPT USNR "A time for Victories" United States Naval Institute Proceedings February 1977 pp. 50–56
4. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130257.htm
5. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130240.htm
6. https://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130260.htm
7. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130256.htm
8. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130237.htm
9. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130238.htm
10. https://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130239.htm
11. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130258.htm
12. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130259.htm
13. "Cargo hold tour, SS Lane". Archived from the original on 2 August 2016. Retrieved 9 January 2017.

External links

• Liberty Ships and Victory Ships, America's Lifeline in War Archived 11 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine – a lesson on Liberty ships and Victory ships from the National Park Service's Teaching with Historic Places
• "Victory Ship Makes 15 knots, Outstrips Liberty" Popular Mechanics, December 1943

• Greenville Victory-class cargo ships