USNS Red Cloud
Cargo ship of the United States Navy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
USNS Red Cloud (T-AKR 313) is one of Military Sealift Command's nineteen Large, Medium-Speed Roll-on/Roll-off (LMSR)[1] Ships and is one of the 49 ships in the prepositioning program.[2] She is a Watson-class vehicle cargo ship named for Corporal Mitchell Red Cloud, Jr., a Medal of Honor recipient, after whom Camp Red Cloud in Korea is also named.
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| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Awarded | 1 January 1996 |
| Builder | National Steel and Shipbuilding Company |
| Laid down | 29 June 1998 |
| Launched | 7 August 1999 |
| In service | 18 January 2000 |
| Identification |
|
| Status | in service |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Watson-class vehicle cargo ship |
| Displacement | 62,644 Long Tons |
| Length | 950 Ft |
| Beam | 106 Ft |
| Draft | 34 Ft |
| Propulsion | 2 Gas Turbines |
| Speed | 24 Knots |
| Range | 12,000 Nautical Miles |
| Complement | 30 |
Laid down on 29 June 1998 and launched on 7 August 1999, Red Cloud was put into service on 18 January 2000.[3]
In 2003 Red Cloud was deployed to transport U.S. Army vehicles to Kuwait to support Operation Iraqi Freedom.
On 12 August 2015, an Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crashed on the deck of the Red Cloud when demonstrating capabilities to the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. The Red Cloud was operating approximately eight miles east of Ukibaru Island. Of the seventeen service members on board the helicopter, seven suffered non-life-threatening injuries.[4]
The Navy announced it would transfer the USNS Red Cloud on 30 September 2026 to the US Maritime Administration.[5]
