USNS Matthew Perry (T-AKE-9) is a Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship of the United States Navy, named in honor of Commodore Matthew C. Perry (1794–1858), who led the effort to open Japan to trade with the West.[2]

USNS Matthew Perry
USNS Matthew Perry
History
Awarded30 January 2006
BuilderNational Steel and Shipbuilding
Laid down3 October 2008
Launched16 August 2009
Sponsored byHester G. Evans
Christened16 August 2009
Acquired24 February 2010[1]
Identification
Statusin active service
General characteristics
Class and typeLewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship
Displacement
  • 23,852 tons light,
  • 40,298 tons full,
  • 16,446 tons dead
Length
  • 210 m (689 ft) overall,
  • 199.3 m (654 ft) waterline
Beam
  • 32.3 m (106 ft) extreme,
  • 32.3 m (106 ft) waterline
Draft
  • 9.1 m (30 ft) maximum,
  • 9.4 m (31 ft) limit
PropulsionIntegrated propulsion and ship service electrical system, with generation at 6.6 kV by FM/MAN B&W diesel generators; one fixed pitch propeller; bow thruster
Speed20 knots (37 km/h)
Range14,000 nmi (26,000 km; 16,000 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Capacity
  • Max dry cargo weight:
  •  5,910 LT (6,000 t)
  • Max dry cargo volume:
  •  783,000 cu ft (22,200 m3)
  • Max cargo fuel weight:
  •  2,350 LT (2,390 t)
  • Cargo fuel volume:
  •  18,000 bbl (2,900 m3)
Complement49 military, 123 civilian
Electronic warfare
& decoys
Nulka decoy launchers
Armament
Aircraft carriedtwo helicopters, either Sikorsky MH-60S Knighthawk or Aerospatiale SA330J Puma

The contract to build Matthew Perry was awarded to National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO) of San Diego, California, on 30 January 2006. Her keel was laid down on 3 October 2008. She was launched and christened on 16 August 2009, sponsored by Hester Evans, a great-great-great-granddaughter of Commodore Perry.

Service

edit

Matthew Perry was one of several participating in disaster relief after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.[3] During the 21 days of operations, Matthew Perry completed 17 separate replenishment events, delivering more than 1.5 million US gallons (5,700 m3) of fuel and transporting relief supplies.[4]

USNS Matthew Perry underwent repair and upgrades from 11 to 27 March 2023 at Kattupalli Shipyard of Larsen & Toubro in India. After the refit, the ship returned to the Indo-Pacific theatre for operations. This was a result of the U.S.-India 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in April 2022 where US was represented by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.[5][6][7]

See also

edit
  • USS Perry, for other ships named after Commodore Perry

Notes

edit
  1. ^ "General Dynamics NASSCO Delivers USNS Matthew Perry". General Dynamics NASSCO. 24 February 2010. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
  2. ^ "Navy Names Four Ships After American Pioneers". U.S. Department of Defense. 2 December 2008. Retrieved 14 October 2010.
  3. ^ Seawaves,"Warships Supporting Earthquake in Japan" Archived 23 March 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Baxter, Edward (May 2011). "Disaster! Operation Tomodachi". Military Sealift Command (MSC). Retrieved 8 October 2011.
  5. ^ India, U. S. Mission (30 March 2023). "United States Naval Ship Matthew Perry Returns to Indo-Pacific Waters After Voyage Repair in India". U.S. Embassy & Consulates in India. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  6. ^ "US Navy Ship Mathew Perry completes repair work at L&T's shipyard near Chennai". The Times of India. 28 March 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  7. ^ Bureau, The Hindu (28 March 2023). "U.S. Naval ship Matthew Perry returns to Indo-Pacific waters after repairs in Chennai". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 27 September 2024. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)

References

edit

  This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.

edit