USNS Patuxent T-AO Oiler Goes in For Maintenance
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Oilers do what their name suggests: provide fuel to Navy ships at sea, and jet fuel to aircraft assigned to aircraft carriers. They’re often overlooked, or considered secondary, but the truth is that the number, quality, and capacity of a fleet’s oilers determines its ability to deploy on distant missions, especially in surge scenarios. They work alongside fast replenishment ships and other vessels that also have fuel-carrying capabilities, and generally shuttle fuel to Navy ships and to a strike group’s accompanying T-AOE station ships.
USNS Patuxent is one of only 3 Henry Kaiser/ T-AO Class oilers to include the double-hull design that’s required under MARPOL standards, though the USA does operate 4 Champion/T-AOT Class tankers with the double-hull feature…
July 12/10: Detyens Shipyards, Inc. in North Charleston, SC receives a $6.85 million firm-fixed-price contract for a 55-calendar day regular drydock and overhaul of Military Sealift Command fleet replenishment oiler USNS Patuxent [T-AO 201]. Work to be performed will include preservation of ballast and potable water tanks; propeller maintenance; and main engine overall. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $8 million.
Work will be performed in North Charleston, S.C., and is expected to be completed by September 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via an unrestricted solicitation posted to the Military Sealift Command, Navy Electronic Commerce Online, and Federal Business Opportunities Web sites, with three offers received. The U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Fleet Support Command is the contracting authority (N40442-10-C-1006).
