US Navy Auxiliary Ships: Uranus (AF-14)

USS Uranus on 19 September 1944.
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Class:        URANUS (AF-14)
Design:        Refrig. Cargo, 1933
Displacement (tons):        1,432 light, 3,540 full load
Dimensions (feet):        269.5' oa, 256.0' pp x 39.5' e x 17.3' fl
Original Armament:        1-4"/50 (1942)
Later armaments:        2-3"/50 6-20mm (1943)
Complement:        52 (1944)
Speed (kts):        11.5
Propulsion (HP):        1,140
Machinery:        Two Helsingor vertical twin-expansion engines with one exhaust turbine, 1 screw

Construction:

AF	Name	Acq.	Builder	Keel	Launch	Commiss.
14	URANUS	11 Aug 41	Helsingor Iron S&E	--	1933	27 Oct 41

Disposition:

AF	Name	Decomm.	Strike	Disposal	Fate	MA Sale
14	URANUS	8 May 46	21 May 46	9 May 46	RTO	--

Class Notes:
FY 1942. On 19 Dec 40 the Navy notified Maritime that it required three more Provision Store Ships and that these were to be C2s with refrigeration. A program for acquisition of new auxiliaries approved by the Secretary of the Navy on 15 Jan 41 included these three ships. On 15 May 41 the Navy reaffirmed its need for three converted AFs by 1 Aug 41. On 26 May 41 the President ordered the Maritime Commission to turn over AF 12-13 in early June, and this chartered ex-Danish ship was acquired in August to fill the requirement for the third AF. The limited initial conversion of URANUS included the addition of foundations for four .50 caliber AA machine guns (but not the guns themselves) and accomodations for six officers and 30 men--which appeared to be all she could carry. She received a more complete conversion, including additional superstructure, a new refrigeration system, and probably a new armament, during an overhaul at the Norfolk Navy Yard between September and December 1943.

Ship Notes:

AF	Name	Notes
14	URANUS	Ex Danish merc. MARIA, originally HELGA. Converted by Robins DD (Todd), Brooklyn, N.Y. Returned to Danish government 16 May 46. Merc. MARIA DAN 1946. Scrapped 1968 as MICHAEL.