PONCHATOULA (AO-148/T-AO-148)
Historical Narrative
USS Ponchatoula, the sixth tanker in the Neosho-class
of fleet oilers, was laid down in Camden, New Jersey, by the New York
Shipbuilding Corp. on March 1, 1954. The ship was launched on July 9,
1954 and it was commissioned on January 12, 1956.
Although Ponchatoula
was a support vessel rather than a combat ship, it came equipped with
two five-inch guns and 12 rapid-fire three-inch anti-aircraft guns
mounted in several gun tubs.
Ponchatoula had a very long and
distinguished career. In addition to serving the majority of its career
in Southeast Asia, from 1963 through 1967, it assisted in a number of
historic recovery operations for the Projects Mercury and Gemini
spaceflights. During the spring of 1966, Ponchatoula set a Navy record by refueling hundreds of vessels.
Although Ponchatoula
continued to serve successfully in the Western Pacific, newer and more
modern fleet oilers were being added to the Navy's Pacific Fleet. After
43 years of service, Ponchatoula was removed from the Navy's
active duty fleet on August 31, 1992, after having been berthed at the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet that April..
On May 1, 1999, the Navy
transferred ownership the ship to the Maritime Administration. It remains at Suisun Bay.
Vessel Name History
No Mission for this vessel
No documents for this vessel
Milestones
Event | Date | Content |
---|---|---|
Entry
| 4/2/1992 | Vessel entered Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet |
Acquisition
| 5/1/1999 | US Navy transferred title to MARAD |
Cleared Historic Review
| 6/21/2005 | California SHPO cleared the ship for disposal on this date. |
Sold Awaiting Removal
| 4/28/2014 | Vessel under Domestic Sale contract, International Shipbreaking LTD. |
Withdrawal
| 5/15/2014 | Vessel departed under domestic sale. |
Ship Imagery
Status Cards
Documents
No documents for this vessel
Plans
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Shipwreck Information
No ship wreck information for this vessel