USNS ''Comet'' (T-AK-269), later T-LSV-7, later T-AKR-7, later SS ''Comet'', is a vehicle landing ship built for 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 ...

. The lone ship of her class, she is named for the

comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ar ...

, and is the fourth U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name. ''Comet'' was laid down 31 July 1957 under Maritime Administration contract (MA hull 42) at Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company of

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester is ...

; launched 31 July 1957; delivered to the Navy 27 January 1958; and placed in service under control of the Military Sealift Command (MSC) as cargo ship USNS ''Comet'' (T-AK-269). Redesignated vehicle landing ship ''T-LSV-7'' on 1 January 1963; further redesignated vehicle cargo ship /

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 ...

ship ''AKR-7'' (date unknown), as such becoming one of the first ship in the world to be specifically designed for loading, shipping and discharge of

cargoes. Her title was transferred to MARAD, she was redesignated SS ''Comet'' and laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet,

Suisun Bay Suisun Bay ( ; Wintun for "where the west wind blows") is a shallow tidal estuary (a northeastern extension of the San Francisco Bay) in Northern California. It lies at the confluence of the Sacramento River and San Joaquin River, forming the ent ...

Benicia, California Benicia ( , ) is a waterside city in Solano County, California, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. It served as the capital of California for nearly thirteen months from 1853 to 1854. The population was 26,997 at the ...

as a member of the MARAD Ready Reserve Force (RRF). Reactivated in 2003 to ferry US Marine Engineers (12 Marines) and equipment from San Diego to Kuwait, with stops in Guam and Dubai/UAE in preparation for the

Iraqi conflict (2003–present) The Iraqi conflict is an armed conflict that began with the 2003 invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition that toppled the government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces and ...

. Removed from MSC control, withdrawn from the RRF by reassignment to the National Defense Reserve Fleet 28 July 2006. In 2014, the Maritime Administration submitted a docket for disposing of the ship from the National Defense Reserve Fleet.

References

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File:Comet T-LSV-7.jpg, USNS ''Comet'' moored pierside at

Bremerhaven, Germany Bremerhaven (, , Low German: ''Bremerhoben'') is a city at the seaport of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms a semi-enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the Riv ...

, April 1976. File:SS Comet (T-AKR-1).jpg, USNS ''Comet'' at sea, date and location unknown. Vehicle landing ships of the United States Navy Ships built by the Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Company 1957 ships {{US-mil-ship-stub