USS AFDM-3

USS AFDM-3, (former YFD-6), was the lead ship of the AFDM-3-class floating dry dock built in 1943 and operated by the United States Navy.[1]

USS YFD-6
History
United States
NameYFD-6
BuilderChicago Bridge & Iron Company
Laid downJanuary 1943
Acquired1 December 1943
Commissioned9 December 1943
ReclassifiedAFDM-3, 1946
Stricken15 November 2000
Identification
Honors and
awards		See Awards
Fate
General characteristics
Class and typeAFDM-3-class floating drydock
Displacement
  • 6,800 t (6,693 long tons), light load
  • 8,000 t (7,874 long tons), full load
Length622 ft 10 in (189.84 m)
Beam124 ft 0 in (37.80 m)
Draft7–15 ft (2.1–4.6 m)
Complement4 officers, 146 enlisted

Construction and career

YFD-6 was built at the Chicago Bridge and Iron Shipyard, in Chicago, Illinois in January 1943. She was commissioned on 9 December 1943.[2]

From 24 to 26 June 1944, USS Larch (YN-16) was dry-docked inside YFD-6.[3] In late December 1944, USS Arikara (AT-98) voyaged to Trinidad where she took YFD-6 in tow before continuing on to the Panama Canal.[4] On 26 June 1945, YFD-6 was prepared transiting the Panama Canal, circa 1945. YFD-6's center section fully turned 90 degrees, floating on its side with the support of a thousand Navy pontoons installed atop the wing wall. This work, done by Navy SeaBees, was necessary to allow the drydock section to fit through the canal's locks. USS YT-355, USS Alarka (YTB-229) and USS Umpqua (ATA-209) guided and towed the dry dock through the canal.[5][6] In AUgust 1946, the dry dock was re-designated as AFDM-3. USS Gauger (YO-55) towed AFDM-3 and steaming in company with USS Bluebird (ASR-19), USS Cahuilla (ATF-152) and USS Tawakoni (ATF-114), she reached Pearl Harbor on 12 October 1946.[7] In latter 1948, AFDM-3 and USS AFDM-7 arrived at the Balboa yard to be prepared to transit the Panama Canal similarly to the USS AFDM-1.[8]

Throughout 1950, The US Navy done heavy workload on AFDM-3, USS AFDM-7 and USS AFDM-9.[9]

In 1986, AFDM-3, USS ARD-10 and USS ARD-16 were all laid up in Mobile, Alabama.[10]

In 1999, the dry dock was leased to the Bender Shipbuilding and Repair Company.[11]

The AFDM-6 was struck from the Naval Register on 15 November 2000.[1] On 1 April 2002, it was sold to the company in Mobile.[11]

In 2010, the Bender Shipbuilding Company was declared bankrupt thus all systems were acquired by the Signal International. After 2018, the shipyard was sold to World Marine of Alabama.[12]

Awards

References
  1. "AFDM-3". Naval Vessel Register. 6 June 2002. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  2. "Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock (AFDM)". www.navsource.org. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  3. "Larch (YN-16)". public1.nhhcaws.local. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  4. "Arikara (AT-98)". public1.nhhcaws.local. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  5. "NH 98828 Floating drydock YFD-6 (center section)". public1.nhhcaws.local. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  6. "NH 98829 Floating drydock YFD-6 (center section)". public2.nhhcaws.local. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  7. "Gauger". public1.nhhcaws.local. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  8. Governor, Canal Zone Office of the (1948). Annual Report of the Governor of the Panama Canal for the Fiscal Year Ended ... U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 30.
  9. Governor, Canal Zone (1935). Report. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 37.
  10. The Port of Mobile, Alabama. The Corps. 1986. p. 93.
  11. States, United (13 July 2000). United States Statutes at Large. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 114 STAT. 533.
  12. "BENDER SHIPBUILDING". Ship Building History. 8 October 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.