Remarkable Recovery

photo - US Navy

 

USS Salvor (ARS-52) is the third of the Safeguard-class of salvage ships.  Constructed by Peterson Builders of Sturgeon Bay Wisconsin Salvor was launched on July 28th of 1984 and commissioned on June 14th of 1986.  Salvor was decommissioned in 2007 and redesignated as USNS Salvor (T-ARS 52) upon transfer to the Military Sealift Command. 

Salvor now has a civilian crew as well as a small contingent of US Navy personnel.   This sturdy ship is designed for salvage operations anywhere in the world.  The boat sports a hull strengthened for busting thru ice, has twin shaft propellers powered by four Caterpillar 388 diesel engines and a bow thruster for greater maneuverability.  Salvor’s mission capabilities include salvage, recovery, diving, towing, mine laying and recovery, off-shore firefighting, heavy lift operations and security functions. 

In 1992 Salvor set the world's record for open ocean recovery by retrieving a helicopter off of Wake Island from a depth of 17,251 feet.   Earlier this year Salvor engaged in the recovery of both an airplane and the remains of a US pilot shot down over the Pacific during WWII near Ngerekebesang Island in the Republic of Palau. Seventy years since the crash Salvor’s civilian crew along with members of the US military completed this amazing mission on February 25, 2018.

You can read the entire story here.