USS Betelgeuse (AKA-11)

Betelgeuse alongside the pier at Tongatapu, Tonga Islands, 8 June 1942
History
United States
Name	USS Betelgeuse
Namesake	Betelgeuse, a star in the constellation Orion
Builder	Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Chester, Pennsylvania
Laid down	9 March 1939
Launched	18 September 1939, as Mormaclark
Acquired	29 May 1941
Commissioned	14 June 1941, as Betelgeuse (AK-28)
Decommissioned	15 March 1946
Reclassified	AKA-11 (attack cargo ship), 1 February 1943
Stricken	28 March 1946
Honours and awards	6 battle stars (World War II)
Fate	Sold into merchant service, 27 June 1947 Scrapped, after April 1972
General characteristics
Class and type	Arcturus-class attack cargo ship
Type	Type C2 ship
Displacement	5,500 long tons (5,588 t) light
Length	459 ft 1 in (139.93 m)
Beam	63 ft (19 m)
Draft	25 ft 10 in (7.87 m)
Propulsion	2-stroke, 4-cylinder single-acting Doxford diesel engine, 1 shaft, 6,000 shp (4.5 MW)
Speed	15.5 knots (28.7 km/h; 17.8 mph)
Complement	267
Armament	1 × 5"/38 caliber gun mount 4 × 3 in (76 mm) gun mounts 4 × twin 40 mm gun mounts 18 × 20 mm gun mounts

USS Betelgeuse (AK-28/AKA-11) was an Arcturus-class attack cargo ship, the first United States Navy ship named for Betelgeuse, a star in the constellation Orion. She served as a commissioned ship for 4 years and 9 months.