T-2 tankers

Maritime History Notes: Tankers landed for Apollo program

WWII ships converted for Apollo program

In May of 1961, President John F. Kennedy committed America to landing an astronaut on the moon by 1970. Preparations to accomplish this amazing feat began soon thereafter. In addition to the actual rocket and space capsule, worldwide communication monitoring and tracking of the space shot were of major concern. This is where three laid-up World War II T-2 tankers supplied the solution.

T-2 Tanker (Photo: Captain James McNamara)

The three were chosen from a class known as Mission tankers of the...

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Maritime History Notes: ‘Jumboized’ T-2 tankers

Maritime History Notes

A total of 525 T-2 tankers were built in U.S. shipyards between 1942 and 1945. Of these, 481 were designated T2-SE-A1, 43 were classed as A2 and one was an A3. However, the entire fleet had the same dimensions: 523.5 feet long by 68 feet in beam and 39 feet in depth. The ships were turbo-electric drive steamers, but the A1s were 6,000 horsepower and the A2s and A3s operated at 10,000 horsepower.

During World War II, a dozen of these ships were lost, leaving more than 400 designated as surplus by...

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