GD NASSCO christens 3rd John Lewis-class oiler

General Dynamics NASSCO christened the future USNS Earl Warren (T-AO 207), the third ship for the U.S. Navy’s John Lewis-class fleet oiler program.

General Dynamics NASSCO was awarded with a contract to design and build the first six ships, T-AO 205 – T-AO 210, by the US Navy for the next generation of fleet oilers, the John Lewis-class in 2016.

In 2022, the Navy awarded NASSCO with a contract modification for the construction of two additional John Lewis-class fleet oilers (T-AO 211 and 212), with the option for the navy to procure an additional oiler, T-AO 213 which was included in the 2023 defense budget.

In addition to the christening of this ship, two ships in the T-AO class fleet oiler program for the US Navy—the future USNS Robert F. Kennedy (T-AO 208) and the future USNS Lucy Stone (T-AO 209)—are currently under construction.

The second ship, the future USNS Harvey Milk (T-AO 206) will be delivered to the Navy later this year.

The lead ship, the USNS John Lewis (T-AO 205) was delivered to the navy in 2022.

The 227-meter-long oilers are designed to transfer fuel to US Navy carrier strike group ships operating at sea and have the capacity to carry 157,000 barrels of oil, a significant dry cargo capacity, aviation capability, and up to a speed of 20 knots.