USS L. Y. Spear

USS L. Y. Spear (AS-36) was the lead ship of her class of submarine tenders, in service to the United States Navy from 1970 through 1996.

USS L. Y. Spear (AS-36)

USS L. Y. Spear in 1983
History
United States
Name	USS L. Y. Spear (AS-36)
Namesake	Lawrence York Spear
Builder	General Dynamics Quincy Shipbuilding Division
Laid down	5 May 1966
Launched	7 September 1967
Acquired	11 February 1970
Commissioned	28 February 1970
Decommissioned	6 September 1996
Stricken	3 May 1999
Fate	Sold to ESCO Marine, Brownsville, Texas, on 9 July 2010 for scrapping
General characteristics
Displacement	22,640 tons
Length	644 ft (196 m)
Beam	29 ft (8.8 m)
Draft	57 ft (17 m)
Propulsion	steam turbine engine, 1 propeller
Speed	20 knots
Complement	1,338
Armament	four 0.5 in (12.7 mm) mg, 4 20mm Cannon

Etymology

She was named for Lawrence York Spear, a former Navy lieutenant who played an integral role in submarine design at Electric Boat Company before and during World War II.

History

L. Y. Spear was laid down by General Dynamics Quincy Shipbuilding Division at Quincy, Massachusetts, on 5 May 1966; launched on 7 September 1967; sponsored by the wife of Vice Admiral Schade, Commander, Submarine Force, Atlantic Fleet; and commissioned on 28 February 1970.

Designed primarily to service nuclear attack submarines, L. Y. Spear was assigned to Submarine Squadron 6 with Norfolk, Virginia, as her home port. She had the capability to provide logistic and technical support for as many as 12 submarines and service four of them alongside simultaneously.

L. Y. Spear was decommissioned on 6 September 1996 and struck from the Navy Register on 3 May 1999. She was berthed at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Virginia, from 1999 till 2010. On 9 July 2010, a contract to dismantle L. Y. Spear was issued to ESCO Marine, Brownsville, Texas. She departed the Norfolk Naval Shipyard at the end of August 2010 and was completely dismantled by 14 July 2011.

The mess deck scene from the movie The Death of Ocean View Park (1979) was filmed aboard the L. Y. Spear.

Awards

• Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation – (Apr-Jul 1980, Feb 1984-May 1986, Jun 1993-Sep 1994, Oct 1994-Sep 1996)
• Navy E Ribbon – (1979, 1983, 1984, 1990, 1991, 1993)
• Navy Expeditionary Medal – (Apr-Jul 1980)
• Southwest Asia Service Medal – (Aug-Nov 1991) Gulf War
• Captain Edward F. Ney Memorial Award – (1974)

References

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
•  This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.

External links

• "USS Lawrence Y. Spear AS 36". United States Navy Submarine Tenders.
• Hamilton, Robert A. (1999). "Morris view of Holland more widely accepted in our era". General Dynamics Electric Boat. Archived from the original on 16 October 2006.