USS Avenger Retires after 27 Years of Service

The US Navy’s mine countermeasure ship USS Avenger (MCM 1), was decommissioned after more than 27 years of naval service during a ceremony on board Naval Base San Diego, Sept. 30.

Avenger was launched June 15, 1985, and the commissioning ceremony took place September 12, 1987, during Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

Over the years, Avenger played integral roles during Operation Desert Storm, Operation Desert Shield, and several deployments to the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea. Avenger was also the first ship to ever locate and destroy a fiberglass-cased influence mine in combat.

Avenger transferred to the inactive reserve on September 30.