 RFA Stromness (A344) underway in the North Atlantic c. 1982
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | RFA Stromness |
| Ordered | 7 December 1964 |
| Builder | Swan Hunter |
| Yard number | 2017 |
| Laid down | 5 October 1965 |
| Launched | 16 September 1966 |
| Fate | Sold to US Navy |
 United States | |
| Name | USNS Saturn |
| Acquired | 1 January 1983 |
| In service | 1 January 1983 |
| Out of service | 6 April 2009 |
| Identification |
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| Fate | Sunk 27 October 2010 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type |
|
| Tonnage |
|
| Displacement | 10,205 tons |
| Length | 523 ft (159 m) o/a |
| Beam | 72 ft (22 m) |
| Draft | 26 ft (7.9 m) (max.) |
| Propulsion | 8-cylinder Sulzer RD 76 turbocharged diesel engine, 11,520 bhp (8,590 kW) at 118 RPM, single propeller |
| Speed | 18 knots (33 km/h) |
| Complement |
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| Armament | 6x pintle mounts for M240B 7.62mm machine guns or Browning M2 12.7mm machine guns in MSC service. Guns not normally fitted |
| Aircraft carried | 2 × UH-46 Sea Knight or MH-60S Seahawk helicopters |
| Aviation facilities | Fitted with a flight deck but no hangar facilities until purchased by U.S. Military Sealift Command, hangar for 2 CH-46, MH-60 or Super Puma post-refit |
RFA Stromness (A344) was a fleet stores ship which served the Royal Fleet Auxiliary until sold to the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command in 1983. While in the service of British forces, it saw service in the Falklands War. After the sale to the United States, it was renamed USNS Saturn (T-AFS-10) and acted as a combat stores ship until it was deactivated in 2009; it was able to supply two other ships at once. In 2010, it was sunk in an exercise by the U.S. Carrier Strike Group Two off the coast of North Carolina.