The Type C5 ship is a
United States Maritime Administration (MARAD) designation for
World War II breakbulk cargo and later a container ship for
containerization shipments. The first type C5-class ship was a class of ships constructed and produced in the United States during World War II. The World War II C5-class ship was
dry bulkcargo ship built by
Bethlehem Steel in
Sparrows Point, Maryland. Bethlehem Steel built eight ships in this
bulk cargo class and four orders were canceled. The C5-class ship has a 24,250
DWT and was 560 feet (170 m) long. The C5 was mainly used as
iron ore carriers. The C5 was needed to replace other ships that sank during World War II. First in her class was SS Venore, USMC #1982, delivered on 20 July 1945. The Type C5-class ship designed to fill the need to move iron ore from
Santa Cruz, Chile, to Sparrows Point, Maryland, through the
Panama Canal, a round-trip of 8,700
nautical miles (16,100 km; 10,000 mi).[2][3]
Post World War II, four ships were given C5 class type C5-S-78a, these were
roll-on/roll-offcontainer ship built by
Ingalls Shipbuilding, Inc. of
Pascagoula, Mississippi and operated by the
Moore-McCormack Lines. The C5-S-78a had a deadweight tonnage of 16,000 tons.[4][5]
SS Curtiss (T-AVB-4) laid down on 1 April 1968 at Ingalls Shipbuilding, Inc. of Pascagoula, Mississippi as SS Mormacksky, Maritime Commission type C5-S-78a.
SS Mormacstar, a Maritime Administration, roll-on/roll-off container ship. renamed: SS Red Jacket, SS American Rapid, SS Rapid, Cape Nome, and
SS Cape Nome (AK-1014), 3 April 2002, laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River Group.[8]
SS Mormacsea 1969 roll-on/roll-off container ship, renamed Defiance in 1978, renamed American Rover in 1982, renamed Rover in 1983 and scrapped in 1993 at
Alang, India.
SS Mormacsun 1970 roll-on/roll-off container ship, renamed SS Young America in 1970, renamed
SS Wright (T-AVB-3) in 1986, in active service.[9]
Conversions
C5-S-37e conversions
Some C3-S-37a cargo ships were modified in the 1970s to a new C5-S-37e design by the Todd Shipyards Corp., Galveston, Texas. C3-class ships was lengthened by 97.5 feet (29.7 m) to be a class C5.[10][11][12]
James Lykes 1960, scrapped in 1995.
Joseph Lykes 1960, scrapped in 1996.
Zoella Lykes 1960, scrapped 1995 at Alang.
John Lykes 1960, scrapped 1995 at Alang.
Thompson Lykes 1960, rebuilt into a barge in 1994.[13]
C5-S-75a built by Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Newport News, Virginia for the
American Mail Line of
Seattle, Washington as
break bulk cargo or container ship, with 21,600 shp (16,100 kW) at 15,950 tons, 21.0 knots (38.9 km/h; 24.2 mph). The largest general cargo liners in 1969.[16]