USS Merrimack (AO-179)

For other ships with the same name, see USS Merrimack.

USS Merrimack (AO-179) was the third ship of the Cimarron-class of fleet oilers of the United States Navy. Merrimack was built at the Avondale Shipyards in New Orleans, Louisiana starting in 1978 and was commissioned in 1981 for service in the Atlantic Fleet. Total cost for the ship was $107.1 million. She was last homeported at Norfolk, Virginia. Between 1989 and 1991 Merrimack was "jumboized", meaning that, after cutting the ship into two sections after about a third from the bow, a 35.7 m long section was added to increase the fuel load. Merrimack was decommissioned on 18 December 1998 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register on the same day. Her title was transferred to the Maritime Administration. She was scrapped in Brownsville on 5 June 2013.

USS Merrimack (AO-179)

USS Merrimack before the jumboization, 1985
History
United States
Name	USS Merrimack
Namesake	Merrimack River
Builder	Avondale Shipyards
Laid down	16 July 1979
Launched	17 May 1980
Commissioned	14 November 1981
Decommissioned	18 December 1998
Stricken	18 December 1998
Identification	IMO number: 7702437
Fate	Scrapped 5 June 2013
General characteristics
Displacement	36,977 tons full load
Length	700 ft (210 m)
Beam	88 ft (27 m)
Draft	32 ft (9.8 m)
Propulsion	Steam Turbine
Speed	20 kn (37 km/h)
Complement	12 officers, 148 enlisted
Armament	2 × 25 mm guns Phalanx CIWS 4 × .50-caliber Machine Guns

Awards

• Joint Meritorious Unit Commendation
• Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation - x2
• Navy E Ribbon - x2
• Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
• Southwest Asia Service Medal
• Armed Forces Service Medal
• Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation
• Coast Guard Special Operations Service Ribbon

Merrimack after refueling USS Iowa (BB-61) in 1985.