Watson-class vehicle cargo ship

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USNS Watson, the lead ship of the class.
Class overview
Name	Watson class
Builders	National Steel and Shipbuilding Company
Built	1996–2002
In commission	1998-present
Planned	8
Completed	8
Active	8
General characteristics
Type	Large, Medium-Speed Roll-on/Roll-off
Displacement	62,970 tons full
Length	951.4 ft (290.0 m)
Beam	106 ft (32.3 m)
Draft	34.1 ft (10.4 m) maximum
Propulsion	Gas turbine
Speed	24 knots (44 km/h)
Capacity	393,000 sq ft (36,511 m2)
Crew	26 civilian crew (up to 45); up to 50 active duty
Aviation facilities	helicopter landing area

The Watson-class vehicle cargo ship is a class of Large, Medium-Speed Roll-on/Roll-off cargo ship used for prepositioning of military vehicles and other materiel by the United States. The class comprises eight of Military Sealift Command's nineteen ships of this type,^[1] and is one part of the 33 ships involved in the Prepositioning Program. The ships are named after Medal of Honor recipients.

The lead ship of this class is USNS Watson. The class, as with the lead ship, was named for Private George Watson, a United States Army soldier killed at sea during World War II.^[2][3] Watson was laid down on 23 May 1996, launched on 26 July 1997, and put into service in the Pacific Ocean on 23 June 1998.^[4] The most recent ship of the class is USNS Soderman, laid down on 31 October 2000, launched on 26 April 2002, and put into service in the Pacific Ocean on 24 September 2002.

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