 USAS American Mariner
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name |
|
| Namesake | George Calvert |
| Owner | War Shipping Administration (WSA) |
| Operator |
|
| Ordered | as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MCE hull 20 |
| Awarded | 14 March 1941 |
| Builder | Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland[1] |
| Cost | $4,021,748[2] |
| Yard number | 2007 |
| Way number | 7 |
| Laid down | 15 August 1941 |
| Launched | 30 December 1941 |
| Sponsored by | Miss Margaret E. Voss |
| Completed | 12 February 1942 |
| Commissioned | 30 December 1941 (USCG) |
| Decommissioned | 31 August 1942 (USCG) |
| Renamed | American Mariner, 30 December 1941 |
| Reclassified | Z3-EC2-S-C1 Training Ship |
| Identification | |
| Fate | Transferred to US Army, 18 June 1958 |
| United States | |
| Name | American Mariner |
| Owner | US Army |
| Acquired | 18 June 1958 |
| Refit | Brooklyn Navy Yard, 1961 |
| Identification | |
| Fate | Transferred to Military Sea Transportation Service, 7 January 1964 |
| United States | |
| Name | American Mariner |
| Owner | Military Sea Transportation Service |
| Acquired | 1964 |
| In service | 7 January 1964 |
| Out of service | 7 January 1966 |
| Stricken | 7 January 1964 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Intentionally grounded for use as a target ship, October 1966 |
| General characteristics [3] | |
| Type | Z3-EC2-S-C1 Training Ship |
| Displacement | |
| Length | |
| Beam | 57 feet (17 m) |
| Draft | 24 ft 7 in (7.49 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph) |
| Range | 23,000 mi (37,000 km) |
| Endurance | 45 days |
| Capacity | 9,507 barrels bunker C |
| Complement |
|
| Sensors and processing systems |
|
USAS American Mariner was a United States Army research vessel from January 1959 to 30 September 1963. She was originally assigned to the DAMP Project by the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) to attempt to collect radar signature data on incoming intercontinental ballistic missiles in the Caribbean, the South Atlantic Ocean, and the Indian Ocean. Her initial operations involved providing radar track on the Atlas missile, which was under development at the time. Subsequently, she provided track on other types of missiles as they proceeded through their development and operational stages. In September 1963 the original contract was transferred to the USAF until the completion of the testing phase in 1964.
Laid down in 1941 as the Liberty ship SS George Calvert (MC #20), she first saw service as the United States Coast Guard training ship TS American Mariner, as which she served until 1953, when she was placed in reserve. After her Army career, she was transferred to the United States Air Force on 1 October 1963, and was redesignated USAFS American Mariner. After Air Force service, she was transferred to the United States Navy on 7 January 1964 and designated USNS American Mariner (T-AGM-12). The mission was not essentially changed as a result of transfer of vessel management. On 1 January 1966 the vessel was stricken from the Navy list and returned for disposal. On 1 October 1966 title to the vessel was transferred to the Navy for disposal and later in the month she was scuttled in shallow water in the Chesapeake Bay about 5 nautical miles (9.3 km) northwest of Ewell, Smith Island, Maryland, for use for a target ship.[4]
She appears to have been the only ship to have served in the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Navy after being built for service with the United States Merchant Marine.