WesWorld

When I first took over the US, I was under the impression that the US had no fleet oilers, there were no record of them being built in the sim reports, nor was there a clearly defined area in the encyclopedia where they could be found (no fault of yours Canis). After some digging I found that 2 are in service as aviation tenders. Some more digging found that all the USN fleet oilers constucted were built prior to the beginning of the sim in 1922. I wondered if the board could inform me what the fate of the other 16 ships the USN should/may have built in Wesworld prior to the beginning of the sim? Do I have these ships in service, or are they mothballed, or in service but badly in need of refit/replacement?

The Ship classes from OTL are the Kanawha Class, the Patoka Class, and the Kaweah Class.

I would assume, as I did with the RN, that those OTL ships built pre-sim would exist and would therefore probably still exist. Like me however you'll need to either invest in refits or replacement tonnage by this stage of the sim.

I agree with what Hood said. It's unreasonable to me to presume that the ships don't exist, but they'd be in a state of degrading performance requiring some level of refit or replacement.

I'd agree that they exist, but it is important to keep in mind that they were build in the age before underway replenishment - they are tankers, not fleet oilers. That said, they could be refitted at less cost and in a shorter turn-around time; though their slow speed would greatly hamper their employment. They are, at least, better than nothing.

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Originally posted by BruceDuncan
I'd agree that they exist, but it is important to keep in mind that they were build in the age before underway replenishment - they are tankers, not fleet oilers.

Kinda-sorta - if I recall correctly, some ships of those classes were involved in the USN's first UNREP experiments in the early 1920s, so they ought to have a marginal capability for it.

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Originally posted by Brockpaine

Quoted

Originally posted by BruceDuncan
I'd agree that they exist, but it is important to keep in mind that they were build in the age before underway replenishment - they are tankers, not fleet oilers.

Kinda-sorta - if I recall correctly, some ships of those classes were involved in the USN's first UNREP experiments in the early 1920s, so they ought to have a marginal capability for it.

True enough, though after 20+ years they would definitely need refit, and they were all comparatively slow - the Kanawah's were good for 14 knots when new, the Patoka and her sisters for 10 and a half, and the Kaweahs for 11 knots.