Final Cruise of the USS Sacramento (AOE-1)

The first and best of her class of Combat Replenishment ships
 and the last ship to be built by the Naval Shipyard, Bremerton , WA.,
the USS Sacramento (AOE-1) was be decommissioned in Oct. of 2004 after 40 years of service to the Navy.

(Click for ship's spec's and additional USS Sacramento links.)

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It was the WestPac cruise of 1980 aboard Sacramento that sparked my interest in celestial navigation  and I have very fond memories of her and the people I served with. The first photo is me, circa 1980 when I was a QM3, shooting a sun line from Sacramento's stbd bridge wing.

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On June 25, the Captain and crew of the Sacramento invited their families, friends and former shipmates for her final cruise down Puget Sound, from the Naval Ordinance Station at Indian Island (across from Port Townsend) to the Naval Station, Bremerton.
I joined the cruise and took over 125 photos of the trip which you can view by clicking on this link;
Final Cruise Photos

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The guests may have been greeted by a wet and gray sky, but that did little to dampen the spirits and we were free to wander all around the ship and enjoy a continental breakfast in the hangar before the underway briefing at 1000.

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	To demonstrate the jobs and life of a Sacramento sailor, the crew set up wonderful static displays of the replenishment stations, weapons systems , and Damage Control equipment. Knowledgeable sailors were everywhere and all eager to show their ship and explain all of the ins and outs of her operation. In some cases guests got to "dress the part" as they donned the fire fighting suits and OBAs (Oxygen Breathing Apparatus for the non-sailor folk)

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Around 1100 we were underway and "Sac" moved as gracefully as only she can . . . leaving everything in her wake. As we steamed south in Puget Sound the weather forecasters were again proved wrong as we enjoyed a wonderfully sunny day.

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On to Page 2

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Boulder Knoll Home Page | USS Sacramento Picture Pages    

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