USNS ''Pollux'' (T-AK-290), later T-AKR-290, the fourth

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 ...

ship of the name, is an ''Algol''-class vehicle cargo ship that is currently maintained by the

United States Maritime Administration The United States Maritime Administration (MARAD) is an agency of the United States Department of Transportation. MARAD administers financial programs to develop, promote, and operate the U.S. Maritime Service and the U.S. Merchant Marine. Det ...

as part of the Ready Reserve Force (RRF) as SS ''Pollux'' (T-AKR-290). In keeping with the pattern of the naming the Algol-class ships after bright stars, the ''Pollux'' was named after Pollux, a star in the northern constellation of Gemini.

Construction and early career

The ship was built as the high speed

container ship A container ship (also called boxship or spelled containership) is a cargo ship that carries all of its load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. Container ships are a common means of commercial intermodal ...

SS ''Sea-Land Market'', USCG ON 550721, IMO 7319632, by A.G. Weser in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

, hull no. 1384, for Sea-Land Service, Inc.Cudahay 206 p. 265 Launched on 1 May 1973, she was delivered to Sea-Land on 1 September 1973.NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive SS Pollux (AKR-290) ex-USNS Pollux (T-AKR-290) (1982-2007) ex-USNS Pollux (T-AK-290) (1981-1982)
/ref> Due to her high operating cost, she proved uneconomical for commercial use. Sea-Land sold her to the United States Navy on 16 November 1981. The U.S. Navy classified the ship as a cargo ship (AK), assigned her to the

Military Sealift Command Military Sealift Command (MSC) is an organization that controls the replenishment and military transport ships of the United States Navy. Military Sealift Command has the responsibility for providing sealift and ocean transportation for all US m ...

for non- commissioned service, and renamed her USNS ''Pollux'' (T-AK-290). In September 1992, the Navy reclassified her as roll-on/roll-off vehicle cargo ship and redesignated her as T-AKR-290.

Conversion

''Pollux''s conversion into a vehicle cargo ship began on 28 July 1984 at

Avondale Shipyards Avondale Shipyard was an independent shipbuilding company, acquired by Litton Industries, in turn acquired by Northrop Grumman Corporation. In 2011, along with the former Ingalls Shipbuilding, the yard was part of Huntington Ingalls Industries. It c ...

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
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. Her cargo hold was redesigned into a series of decks connected by ramps so vehicles can be driven into and out of the cargo hold for fast loading and unloading. She was also fitted with two pairs of cranes, one pair amidships capable of lifting , and the other pair aft capable of lifting . When her conversion was complete, Avondale delivered her to the Military Sealift Command on 31 March 1986.

Service

When not active, ''Pollux'' was kept in a reduced operating status due to her high operating cost. If needed, she could be activated and ready to move in 96 hours. ''Pollux'' took part in the

Persian Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

in 1990-1991. Along with the other seven ''Algol'' class vehicle cargo ships, she transported 14 percent of all cargo transported between the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

during and after the war. She was in Boston's Dry Dock Number 3 as of 10/28/14. As of 1/23/18 http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:455429/mmsi:368989000/imo:7319632/vessel:POLLUX As of 8/26/2022, according to the website https://www.marinetraffic.com/ she is moored in McFadden Bend of the Neches River, Port Neches, Texas.

Transfer to Maritime Administration and Ready Reserve Force

On 1 October 2007, ''Pollux'' was transferred to the

. On 1 October 2008, she was transferred to the Ready Reserve Force, losing her "

USNS United States Naval Ship (USNS) is the prefix designation given to non- commissioned ships that are property of the United States Navy (USN). Definition United States Naval Ships are unarmed auxiliary support vessels owned by the U.S. Navy ...

" designation, and laid up at

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. She can be reactivated in five days when needed. If activated again, ''Pollux'' will report to the

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pollux (T-AKR-290) Ships built in Bremen (state) Cargo ships of the United States Navy Algol-class vehicle cargo ships 1973 ships Gulf War ships of the United States Cold War auxiliary ships of the United States