In service 22 April 1986 Beam 90 ft (27 m) Launched 1985 | Status in active service Draft 24 ft 8 in (7.52 m) Length 188 m | |
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Name USNS Lawrence H. Gianella Displacement 39,624 long tons (40,260 t) full Builder American Ship Building Company | ||
USNS Lawrence H. Gianella (T-AOT-1125) is a United States Military Sealift Command product tanker which typically carries diesel, gasoline, and JP5 (jet fuel). Its reinforced bow allows it to occasionally make the yearly fuel delivery to McMurdo Station in Antarctica.
Name origin
The vessel is named for Radio Operator Lawrence H. Gianella who was posthumously awarded the Merchant Marine Distinguished Service Medal in 1943 for the heroic action he undertook when his ship was torpedoed on 19 December 1941 in mid-Pacific. Orders had been given to abandon the rapidly sinking ship but Gianella - realizing that his shipmates chances of rescue were slim and dependent on him getting out an SOS message - stayed on board and rigged an emergency radio set, thus sacrificing himself for his shipmates.