The USNS Benjamin Isherwood is a significant vessel in the US Navy's fleet. It was built in 1999 and is a Dry Cargo Ship (T-AKE).
This ship is part of the Lewis and Clark-class of cargo ships. The Lewis and Clark-class vessels are designed to carry dry cargo and ammunition.
The USNS Benjamin Isherwood is 689 feet long and has a beam of 106 feet. Its gross tonnage is 41,000 tons.
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Ship Details
The USNS Benjamin Isherwood is a T-AGM 24 Kingfisher-class oceanographic survey ship. It was built by the Avondale Shipyards in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The ship has a length of 257 feet 2 inches, a beam of 47 feet 1 inch, and a draft of 14 feet 7 inches. It is powered by a 3,500 horsepower diesel-electric propulsion system.
The USNS Benjamin Isherwood has a speed of 14 knots and a range of 12,000 nautical miles. It can carry a crew of 55 and support up to 50 scientists.
Construction
Benjamin Isherwood's construction was laid down by the Pennsylvania Shipbuilding Company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 12 July 1986.
The construction process was plagued with problems, which ultimately led to the cancellation of the construction contract with Pennsylvania Shipbuilding on 31 August 1989.
Benjamin Isherwood was launched on 15 August 1988, but her construction was far from complete.
A new contract to complete the ship was awarded to the Tampa Shipbuilding Company of Tampa, Florida, on 16 November 1989.
Benjamin Isherwood was towed from Philadelphia to Tampa, but encountered a storm off the coast of Corolla, North Carolina, on Christmas Eve, which caused her to break loose from the tow and run aground.
Fortunately, there was no significant damage, and she was towed off the beach a few days later at high tide.
The ship was 95.3 percent complete when the construction contract with Tampa Shipbuilding was cancelled on 15 August 1993 due to cost overruns.
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