USS ATA-217
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
.svg){kind=small}  United States | |
| Name | USS Tesota |
| Namesake | A small leguminous tree found in Mexico and the southwestern section of the United States. Also called desert ironwood. |
| Ordered | as YN-95 |
| Builder | Canulette Shipbuilding Co., Slidell, Louisiana |
| Laid down | 11 December 1943 as Tesota (YN-95) |
| Launched | 29 July 1944 |
| Commissioned | 16 January 1945 as USS ATA-217 |
| Decommissioned | 7 May 1946, at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California |
| Reclassified | AN-71, 20 January 1944; USS ATA-217, 10 August 1944 |
| Stricken | 21 May 1946 |
| Fate | transferred to the U.S. Maritime Commission, 25 March 1947; fate unknown |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Palo Blanco-class auxiliary fleet tug |
| Displacement | 1,275 tons |
| Length | 194' 6" |
| Beam | 34' 7" |
| Draft | 14' 1" |
| Propulsion | diesel-electric, single screw, 2,500hp |
| Speed | 12.1 knots |
| Complement | 57 officers and enlisted |
| Armament | two single 40mm AA gun mounts |
USS ATA-217 was an ATA-214-class tug of the United States Navy built near the end of World War II. Originally laid down as Tesota (YN-95), a net tender of the Ailanthus class, she was redesignated as AN-71, a net layer, before launch. Before completion, the name Tesota was cancelled and the ship was named ATA-217, an unnamed auxiliary ocean tug.
Career
ATA-217 was laid down as the net tender Tesota (YN-95) on 11 December 1943 at Slidell, Louisiana, by the Canulette Shipbuilding Company; was reclassified a net laying ship and redesignated AN-71 on 20 January 1944; and was launched on 29 July 1944. However, the name Tesota was canceled on 10 August 1944, and the ship was reclassified an auxiliary ocean tug and re-designated ATA-217 on the same day. She was commissioned on 16 January 1945, Lt. H. A. V. Post, USNR, in command. Following a short shakedown cruise early in February 1945, the tug departed Norfolk, Virginia, for Hawaii and arrived at her home port, Pearl Harbor, on 1 March. After serving there for more than a year, the ship proceeded to the U.S. West Coast.
ATA-217 was decommissioned at Mare Island, California, on 7 May, and was struck from the Navy List on 21 May 1946. ATA-217 was transferred to the U.S. Maritime Commission on 25 March 1947 and was sold the same day to Martinolick Shipbuilding Co., San Francisco, California.
References
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.- NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - YN-95 / AN-71 'Tesota - ATA-217
