USS Xenia (AKA-51)

USS Xenia (AKA-51)
History
Laid down:	4 May 1945
Launched:	27 June 1945
Commissioned:	28 July 1945
Decommissioned:	13 May 1946
Struck:	30 November 1946
Fate:	served the Chilean Navy as Presidente Errazuriz,
General Characteristics
Builder:	Walsh-Kaiser Co., Inc.
Hull type:	S4-SE2-BE1
Displacement:	4,087 tons light, 7,080 tons loaded
Length:	426 ft (129.8 m)
Beam:	58 ft (17.7 m)
Draft:	16 ft (4.9 m)
Propulsion:	Steam turbo-electric drive; two boilers, two propellers, 6,000 shp (4.5 MW)
Speed:	16.9 knots (31.3 km/h)
Complement:	321 (20 officers, 301 men), plus 255 embarked troops
Armament:	1 × 5"/38 caliber DP gun, 4 × twin 40 mm AA guns, 16 × 20 mm AA guns
Boats:	14 LCVP, 8 LCM

USS Xenia (AKA-51), was an Artemis-class attack cargo ship named after the minor planet 625 Xenia, which was named after the Greek word for hospitality. She served as a commissioned ship for 9 months.

History

Xenia was laid down under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 1912) on 4 May 1945 at Providence, R.I., by the Walsh-Kaiser Co., Inc.; launched on 27 June 1945; sponsored by Mrs. Roger W. Armstrong; and commissioned at the Boston Navy Yard on 28 July 1945, LCDR G. B. Service, USNR, in command.

Shortly after the ship was commissioned, the town of Xenia, Ohio offered to adopt her.

Following shakedown, Xenia operated off the east coast with Service Force, Atlantic Fleet, from September 1945 until 17 April 1946, when she reported to the Commandant, 3d Naval District, New York, N.Y., for disposal. Decommissioned on 13 May 1946, Xenia was struck from the Navy list on 30 November 1946 and subsequently transferred to the government of Chile. Renamed Presidente Errazuriz, she served the Chilean Navy, for a time serving as fleet flagship, until 1962.

References

• Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (Primary source for this article)

External links

• Naval Historical Center: USS Xenia
• NavSource Online: AKA-51 Xenia
• 51 Years of AKAs