Laramie II (T-AO-203)
1995–
The second U.S. Navy ship named for the river in southeastern Wyoming that empties into the North Platte River.
(T-AO-203: displacement 9,500; length 677'; beam 97'; draft 35'; speed 20 knots; complement 103; armament 1 .50-caliber machine gun, 2 20mm Phalanx close in weapon system (CIWS); class Henry J. Kaiser)
The second Laramie (T-AO-203) was laid down on 10 January 1994 at New Orleans, La., by Avondale Shipyard, Inc.; launched on 6 May 1995; and sponsored by Mrs. Pat Deutch, wife of John M. Deutch, former Deputy Secretary of Defense. Laramie was one of only three of the eighteen Henry J. Kaiser-class ships -- the other two being Patuxent (T-AO-201) and Rappahannock (T-AO-204) -- to be built with a double bottom in order to meet the requirements of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990. Hull separation is 6 feet at the sides and 6 feet 6 inches on the bottom, reducing her liquid cargo capacity by about 21,000 barrels from that of the 15 ships of her class without a double bottom.
Laramie entered non-commissioned U.S. Navy service under the control of the Military Sealift Command (MSC) with a primarily civilian crew on 7 May 1996, the last of the eighteen Henry J. Kaiser-class ships to enter service. She serves in the United States Atlantic Fleet.
From 30 January through 12 February 2012, Laramie participated in Bold Alligator, an exercise ashore and afloat, in and off the coasts of Va., N.C. and Fla. The culmination included three large-scale events within the exercise: an amphibious assault at Camp Lejeune, N.C.; an aerial assault from the sea into Fort Pickett, Va.; and an amphibious raid on Fort Story, Virginia. Nine countries participated in the evolution, providing maritime, land and air units or observers. Those countries along with the U.S. forces were Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
Detailed history under construction.
Paul J. Marcello
25 November 2015
