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Naval History and Heritage Command

Naval History and Heritage Command

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  • Boats-Ships--Support Ships
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Altair III (AKR-291)

(AKR-291: dp. 55,355 (f.); 1. 947'; b. 105'; dr. 37'; s. 33.0 k.; cpl. 44; cl. Algol; T. SL-7)

 

A first magnitude star in the constellation Aquila, in the northern Milky Way.

III

The third Altair, a fast sealift ship, was built at Emden, West Germany, by the Rheinstahl Nordseewerke, as the SL-7 type containership Sea-Land Finance, and entered mercantile service in September 1973. Assigned the name Altair and the classification AK-291 on 15 October 1981, the ship was acquired by the Navy on 1 May 1982 to serve the needs of the Rapid Deployment Force (later the Afloat Prepositioning Force). Reclassified as AKR-291 on 1 November 1983, Altair underwent conversion at the Avondale Shipbuilding Company's Westwego, La., yard, and was dedicated in ceremonies at the conversion yard by Mrs. Bonnie Livingston, the wife of Congressman Robert L. Livingston, on 9 November 1985.

Published: Tue Jun 16 13:25:10 EDT 2015