Service History
Sacramento served in the Gulf of Tonkin during the Vietnam War. She was known as a "floating supermarket" because of all the goods it carried.
The FAST (Fast Automated Shuttle Transfer) cargo handling system originally installed was replaced with the STREAM (Standard Tensioned Replenishment Alongside Method) underway replenishment system in 1977.
Her original armament consisted of four 3"/50 caliber guns. The two forward guns were replaced by Mk.29 NATO Sea Sparrow in 1976, and the two aft mounts were replaced by Mk.15 Phalanx CIWS in 1981. In 1995 MK-23 TAS (Target Acquisition System) was installed to facilitate NSSMS and locate and track air threats.
In 1995 while in the Persian gulf, the ship assisted in "Operation Southern Watch" and in "Operation Vigilant Sentinel". During an underway replenishment, the USS Abraham Lincoln trying to position herself for flight operations, caused an incident where she ran into the port side of the Sacramento, crushing the M-frames, partially crushing a female crew berthing area, and punching a large hole in the TACAN room. The Lincoln was able to continue on with her mission while the Sacramento had to dock at Jebel Ali, U.A.E. for several weeks for repair.
In 1996 the Sacramento had one Nato Sea Sparrow launcher on the forecastle, two Phalanx CIWS past mid-ship port and starboard, one 25 mm automatic cannon on the port side, and four .50 machine guns; two port and two starboard. The ship was also fitted with electronic warfare equipment; a AN/SLQ-32 with four MK.36 super-RBOC (Rapid Bloom Offboard Chaff) decoys, and an electronics technician ran AN/SLQ-25 towed torpedo decoy (NIXIE).
Sacramento was deployed to the Persian Gulf and supported operations during the First Gulf War.
Sacramento was the first AOE to ever qualify for an electromagnetic interference certificate in 1996.
Sacramento decommissioned on October 2004. On April 13, 2007 a contract for the ship's disposal was awarded to Esco Marine. ex-Sacremento is currently undergoing scrapping in Brownsville, Texas.
Read more about this topic: USS Sacramento (AOE-1)
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