SS John P. Gaines
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | SS John P. Gaines |
| Operator: | War Shipping Administration |
| Builder: | Northland Transportation Company, Seattle |
| Laid down: | 21 June 1943 |
| Launched: | 11 July 1943 |
| Fate: | Sank on 24 November 1943 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 14,245 long tons (14,474 t) |
| Length: | 422.8 ft |
| Beam: | 57 ft |
| Draught: | 27 ft 9.25 in |
| Propulsion: | Two oil-fired boilers, triple expansion steam engine, single screw, 2500 horsepower (1.9 MW) |
| Speed: | 11 to 11.5 knots (20 to 21 km/h) |
| Capacity: | 10,856 t (10,685 long tons) deadweight (DWT) |
SS John P. Gaines was a Liberty ship built during World War II, and named for politician John P. Gaines.
On 24 November 1943 she broke in two and sank with the loss of 10 lives off the Aleutian Islands.[1] It was later determined that the welded construction combined with the grade of steel used had caused embrittlement that caused a sudden break, as demonstrated by metallurgist Constance Tipper. A number of other Liberty ships suffered similar problems, with three sinking.[2]
References
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