USNS Sampan Hitch

Summary

USNS Sampan Hitch (T-AGM-18) was a missile range instrumentation ship which earlier operated as the U.S. Air Force Ocean Range Vessel USAFS Sampan Hitch (ORV-1836) on the U.S. Air Force's Eastern Test Range during the late 1950s and early 1960s. Sampan Hitch operated under an Air Force contract with Pan American Airways Guided Missile Range Division headquartered in Cocoa Beach, Florida.

History
United States
NameSampan Hitch
NamesakeA name retained
BuilderWalter Butler Shipbuilding Inc., Superior, Wisconsin
Laid downdate unknown, as a type (C1-M-AV1) hull, MC hull 2133
Launched12 July 1945
CompletedAugust 1945
Acquiredby the U.S. Navy in 1964
In servicec. 1958
Out of servicedate unknown
Strickendate unknown
Fatesold for scrapping 23 April 1973 to a South Korean steel firm
General characteristics
Typemissile range instrumentation ship
Displacement
  • 3,366 tons light
  • 6,090 tons full load
Length338' 9"
Beam50' 4"
Draft17' 7"
PropulsionDiesel, single propeller
Speed11.5 knots
Endurance30 days at sea
Complementunknown
Sensors and
processing systems
telemetry
Armamentnone

Sampan Hitch, assigned to the South Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean area, provided the Air Force with metric data on intercontinental ballistic missiles launched from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) in Florida.

Sampan Hitch operated in the intercontinental ballistic missile re-entry area near Ascension Island, and was home-ported out of South Atlantic Fleet Hqtrs, Chagaramus (Port of Spain) Trinidad, BWI.

Acquisition by the Navy edit

Sampan Hitch was acquired from the U.S. Air Force by the U.S. Navy in 1964.

Operational data edit

Operational data while on U.S. Navy service during post-1964 period on this vessel is lacking.

Inactivation edit

Sampan Hitch was struck from the Navy List at an unknown date, and was sold for scrapping 23 April 1973 to Dongkuk Steel Mill Company, Ltd., South Korea. Her subsequent fate is not known.

See also edit

References edit

  • NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - T-AGM-18 Sampan Hitch