The P2 transport was a United States Maritime Commission design for a passenger ship which could be readily converted into a troop transport. Three variants of the design were built, the P2-SE2-R1 (Admirals), P2-S2-R2 (Generals), and P2-SE2-R3 (Presidents).
Admirals
.jpg.webp) USS Admiral R. E. Coontz (AP-122) | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Admiral-class |
| Builders | Bethlehem Alameda Works |
| Operators |  United States Navy |
| Built | 1942–45 |
| In commission | 1944–91 |
| Planned | 10 |
| Completed | 8 |
| General characteristics [1] | |
| Type | P2-SE2-R1 |
| Tonnage | |
| Displacement | 12,650 long tons (12,853 t) |
| Length | 609 ft (186 m) o/a |
| Beam | 75 ft 6 in (23.01 m) |
| Draft | 25 ft (7.6 m) |
| Depth | 43 ft 6 in (13.26 m) |
| Installed power | 19,000 hp (14,168 kW) |
| Propulsion | Turbo-electric transmission; twin screw propellers |
| Speed | 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph) |
| Range | 12,000 nmi (22,000 km; 14,000 mi) |
| Capacity | 100,000 cu ft (2,800 m3) |
| Troops | 5,200 |
Ten P2-SE2-R1 ships were ordered by the Maritime Commission in World War II. The ships were laid down by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation in Alameda, California. The intended use of these ships after the war was trans-Pacific service. As ordered, the ships were named after U.S. Navy admirals. Only eight ships were completed as troop transports for the navy, with the last two ships canceled on 16 December 1944. Despite being canceled, the last two ships were completed after the war to the P2-SE2-R3 design as civilian ships.
In 1946 the ships were all decommissioned by the navy and transferred back to the Maritime Commission, and from there to the United States Army. The army operated them with civilian crews as part of the Army Transport Service and renamed them after generals of the United States Army. In 1950 the ships were transferred back to the navy, but not recommissioned. Instead they were assigned to the Military Sea Transportation Service, manned by a civil service crew, and keeping the names the army had given them.
| United States Navy | Army Transport Service | Military Sea Transportation Service |
|---|---|---|
| USS Admiral W. S. Benson (AP-120) | USAT General Daniel I. Sultan | USNS General Daniel I. Sultan (T-AP-120) |
| USS Admiral W. L. Capps (AP-121) | USAT General Hugh J. Gaffey | USNS General Hugh J. Gaffey (T-AP-121) |
| USS Admiral R. E. Coontz (AP-122) | USAT General Alexander M. Patch | USNS General Alexander M. Patch (T-AP-122) |
| USS Admiral E. W. Eberle (AP-123) | USAT General Simon B. Buckner | USNS General Simon B. Buckner (T-AP-123) |
| USS Admiral C. F. Hughes (AP-124) | USAT General Edwin D. Patrick | USNS General Edwin D. Patrick (T-AP-124) |
| USS Admiral H. T. Mayo (AP-125) | USAT General Nelson M. Walker | USNS General Nelson M. Walker (T-AP-125) |
| USS Admiral Hugh Rodman (AP-126) | USAT General Maurice Rose | USNS General Maurice Rose (T-AP-126) |
| USS Admiral W. S. Sims (AP-127) | USAT General William O. Darby | USNS General William O. Darby (T-AP-127) |
| USS Admiral D. W. Taylor (AP-128) | Canceled 16 December 1944 and completed as civilian passenger liners. | |
| USS Admiral F. B. Upham (AP-129) | ||
Generals
 USS General H. W. Butner (APA-113) | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | General-class |
| Builders | Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, Kearny, New Jersey |
| Operators | United States Navy |
| Built | 1942–45 |
| In commission | 1943–70 |
| Completed | 11 |
| General characteristics [1] | |
| Type | P2-S2-R2 |
| Tonnage | |
| Displacement | 11,450 long tons (11,634 t) |
| Length | 623 ft (190 m) o/a |
| Beam | 75 ft 6 in (23.01 m) |
| Draft | 29 ft (8.8 m) |
| Depth | 51 ft 6 in (15.70 m) |
| Propulsion | C3-type geared turbines, 18,000 hp (13,423 kW), 2 shafts |
| Speed | 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph) |
| Range | 15,000 nmi (28,000 km; 17,000 mi) |
| Capacity | 36,000–48,000 cu ft (1,000–1,400 m3) |
| Troops | 4,500 to 4,800 |
Eleven P2-S2-R2 ships were ordered by the Maritime Commission in World War II. The ships were laid down by Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company of Kearny, New Jersey. The intended use of these ships after the War was for South American service. As ordered, the ships were all named after United States Army generals.
Unlike the Admirals, the Generals did not have a relatively uniform life after World War II. Three were transferred to the Army as the Admirals had been, of which one was disposed of by the Army and converted to a passenger liner before the Korean War. Five were retained by the Navy and were transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service in October 1949 to be manned by civilian crews, and two others were transferred to American President Lines with the intent of being converted to a passenger liners, but ended up being chartered troop ships that in the Korean War were rejoined to military control as part of the Military Sea Transportation Service.
Ships in class
| Ship name | Hull no. | Builder | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Decommissioned | Post USN - service names | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General John Pope | AP-110 | Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Kearny, New Jersey | 14 July 1942 | 21 March 1943 | 5 August 1943 | 12 June 1946 | USAT General John Pope USNS General John Pope (T-AP-110) |
Scrapped |
| General A. E. Anderson | AP-111 | 2 May 1943 | 5 October 1943 | 10 November 1958 | USNS General A. E. Anderson (T-AP-111) | Scrapped in Taiwan, July 1987 | ||
| General W. A. Mann | AP-112 | 1942 | Unknown | 13 October 1943 | 11 December 1965 | USNS General W. A. Mann (T-AP-112) | ||
| General H. W. Butner | AP-113 | 19 September 1943 | 11 January 1944 | 28 January 1960 | USNS General H. W. Butner (T-AP-113) | |||
| General William Mitchell | AP-114 | Unknown | 31 October 1943 | 19 January 1944 | 1 December 1966 | USNS General William Mitchell (T-AP-114) | Scrapped at Taiwan, 1988 | |
| General George M. Randall | AP-115 | 20 July 1943 | 30 January 1944 | 15 April 1944 | 2 June 1961 | USNS General George M. Randall (T-AP-115) | Sold for scrap, 8 May 1975 | |
| General M. C. Meigs | AP-116 | 22 September 1943 | 13 March 1944 | 3 June 1944 | 1 October 1958 | SS General M. C. Meigs USNS General M. C. Meigs (T-AP-116) |
Broken up after being stranded on 9 January 1972 | |
| General W. H. Gordon | AP-117 | 2 November 1943 | 7 May 1944 | 29 Jun 1944 | April 1970 | SS General W. H. Gordon USNS General W. H. Gordon (T-AP-117) |
Scrapped 1987, Taiwan | |
| General W. P. Richardson | AP-118 | 2 February 1944 | 6 August 1944 | 15 April 1944 | 14 February 1946 | USAT General W. P. Richardson SS La Guardia SS Leilani SS President Roosevelt SS Atlantis SS Emerald Seas SS Sapphire Seas SS Ocean Explorer I |
Scrapped in India, 2005 | |
| General William Weigel | AP-119 | 15 March 1944 | 3 September 1944 | 6 January 1945 | 10 May 1946 | USAT General William Weigel USNS General William Weigel (T-AP-119) |
Scrapped 1987, Taiwan | |
| General J. C. Breckinridge | AP-176 | 18 March 1945 | 30 June 1945 | 1 December 1966 | USAT General J. C. Breckinridge USNS General J. C. Breckinridge (T-AP-176) |
Scrapped 1988, Taiwan |
Presidents
As noted above, the last two Admirals were canceled in 1944 while under construction. They were completed to the P2-SE2-R3 design and operated by American President Lines as the SS President Cleveland (ex-USS Admiral D. W. Taylor) and the SS President Wilson (ex-USS Admiral F. B. Upham). The President Wilson was later renamed SS Oriental Empress when sold to C.Y. Tung in 1978.
References
- 1 2 "United States Maritime Commission built P-Type Passenger Ships". usmm.org. 2008. Retrieved 12 October 2012.