SS Francis Preston Blair
Appearance
21°48′S 153°42′E / 21.8°S 153.7°E
History | |
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Name | Francis Preston Blair |
Owner | War Shipping Administration. |
Operator | Sudden & Christenson Company |
Launched | 3 January 1943 |
Fate | Wrecked 15 July 1945 |
General characteristics [1] | |
Class and type |
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Tonnage | |
Displacement | |
Length | |
Beam | 57 feet (17 m) |
Draft | 27 ft 9.25 in (8.4646 m) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed | 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph) |
Capacity |
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Complement | |
Armament |
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SS Francis Preston Blair was an American Liberty ship, 7,196 tons stranded on Saumarez Reef in the Coral Sea during a cyclone in 1945. The ship has since deteriorated into a rusty heap. The wreck was used by Royal Australian Air Force F-111 aircraft for target practice during the 1980s.
The bronze propeller was salvaged by unknown persons between 1964 and 1970. Wreck was visited by Wild Kingdom who made a TV episode hosted by Marlin Perkins for USA and world distribution in 1971.
Francis Preston Blair was operated during
Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration. She was unloading troops and supplies at off Queensland, Australia before the grounding.[2]
See also
References
- ^ Davies 2004, p. 23.
- ^ mariners-l.co.uk, ships F
Sources
- Davies, James (May 2004). ""Liberty" Cargo Ship – Feature Article" (PDF). ww2ships.com. Retrieved 3 February 2022.