USNS ''Bob Hope'' (T-AKR-300), the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very complex and may ...

of its class of vehicle cargo ships for

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

vehicle prepositioning, was a naval ship of the United States named after

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in Bob Hope filmography, more than 70 short and ...

, the entertainer. Very few ships of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

have been named after a person who was alive at the time of the christening. The contract to build her was awarded to Avondale Industries on 2 September 1993 and her

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...

on 29 May 1995. She was launched on 27 March 1997, and delivered on 18 November 1998. BobHopeinAntwerp

A non-combatant

roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or using ...

(RORO) vessel crewed by U.S. civilian mariners under the Navy's Military Sealift Command, ''Bob Hope'' and other ships of the class are used to preposition tanks, trucks and other wheeled vehicles and supplies needed to support an army heavy brigade. She has seen service delivering supplies and equipment to the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

and Iraq. ''Bob Hope'' was stricken from the

Naval Vessel Register The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from t ...

on 19 December 2022.

Features

The ship has two 110-ton Hagglunds deck crane pedestals mounted with twin cranes.

References

External links

MSC Ship Inventory: USNS ''Bob Hope''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bob Hope (T-AKR-300) Bob Hope-class vehicle cargo ships Auxiliary ships of the United States 1997 ships Ships built in New Orleans Bob Hope