On July 11, San Diego-based ship design and build company General Dynamics NASSCO held a delivery ceremony for the future U.S. Navy vessel Harvey Milk, the second ship in the U.S. Navy’s John Lewis-class fleet oiler program.
The 742-foot-long oilers are designed to transfer fuel to Navy carrier strike group ships operating at sea and have the capacity to carry 157,000 barrels of oil, a significant dry cargo capacity, aviation capability and up to a speed of 20 knots.
The vessel’s part of an initial six-ship naval contract NASSCO secured in 2016. The first vessel, the future USNS John Lewis, was delivered in 2022. The company’s currently building the future U.S. Navy ships Harvey Milk, Earl Warren, Robert F. Kennedy, Lucy Stone and Sojourner Truth.
On May 23, the company announced that its naval contract has been expanded to include the construction of another vessel in the fleet oiler program, with the $736 million contract modification bringing the contract’s total value to about $5.5 billion.