- published: 09 Dec 2015
- views: 158921
A replenishment oiler or fleet tanker is a naval auxiliary ship with fuel tanks and dry cargo holds, which can replenish other ships while underway on the high seas. Several countries have used replenishment oilers.
The US Navy hull classification symbol for this type of ship was AOR; such ships are now included in the AO classification (United States Navy oilers). Replenishment oilers are slower and carry fewer dry stores than the US Navy's fast combat support ships (AOEs).
The development of the oiler paralleled the change from coal- to oil-fired boilers in warships. Prior to the adoption of oil fired machinery, navies could extend the range of their ships either by maintaining coaling stations or for warships to raft together with colliers and for coal to be manhandled aboard. Though arguments related to fuel security were made against such a change, the ease with which liquid fuel could be transferred led in part to its adoption by navies world wide.
The forerunner of the modern replenishment oiler was a Kriegsmarine (German Navy) ship, the Dithmarschen, which was built in 1938. The Dithmarschen was designed to provide both fuel and stores (including munitions) to the German fleet. After World War II she was claimed by the United States as a war prize and commissioned into the United States Navy as the USS Conecuh (AOR-110). The ship proved the feasibility and flexibility of this sort of vessel in supporting task forces at sea.
Oiler may refer to:
Since the end of the age of sail a ship has been any large buoyant marine vessel. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and cargo or passenger capacity. Ships are used on lakes, seas, and rivers for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing, entertainment, public safety, and warfare. Historically, a "ship" was a vessel with sails rigged in a specific manner.
Ships and boats have developed alongside mankind. In armed conflict and in daily life they have become an integral part of modern commercial and military systems. Fishing boats are used by millions of fishermen throughout the world. Military forces operate vessels for combat and to transport and support forces ashore. Commercial vessels, nearly 35,000 in number, carried 7.4 billion tons of cargo in 2007.
Ships were key in history's great explorations and scientific and technological development. Navigators such as Zheng He spread such inventions as the compass and gunpowder. Ships have been used for such purposes as colonization and the slave trade, and have served scientific, cultural, and humanitarian needs. After the 16th century, new crops that had come from and to the Americas via the European seafarers significantly contributed to the world's population growth. Maritime transport has shaped the world's economy into today's energy-intensive pattern.