The
Coronados keel was laid down on 1 May 1965 by the
Lockheed Shipbuilding and Construction Company of
Seattle,
Washington. She was
launched on 1 July 1966. After two years of labor shortages and a 12-month strike, she was
commissioned 23 May 1970. First assigned to the
U.S. Atlantic Fleet in the 1970s,
Coronado conducted extensive operations, deploying on numerous occasions to the
Caribbean Sea and
Mediterranean Sea, as well as northern Europe. In 1980, the
Coronado was re-designated an
Auxiliary Command Ship (AGF-11). Her first assignment was to relieve the as command ship for Commander, U.S.
Middle East Force, stationed in the
Persian Gulf. Reassigned in October 1985, the
Coronado relieved as the command ship of Commander,
U.S. Sixth Fleet. During a ten-month tour with the Sixth Fleet,
Coronado operated out of
Gaeta, Italy, participating in operations in the
Gulf of Sidra and strikes against
Libyan terrorist support facilities. during a visit to
Coronado on 30 July 2002 In July 1986, the
Coronado was relieved as Sixth Fleet command ship and ordered to
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, to become the command ship for Commander,
U.S. 3rd Fleet. The admiral and his staff embarked on board
Coronado in November 1986. Subsequently,
Coronado was relieved as Third Fleet command ship and deployed to the Persian Gulf to assume duties as command ship for Commander,
U.S. Middle East Force in January 1988. During this period she served as
flagship for
Operation Praying Mantis, the largest American naval action since World War II. Upon her return to Pearl Harbor on 9 November 1988,
Coronado again assumed her duties as Commander, U.S. Third Fleet command ship. USS
Coronado remained homeported in Hawaii until August 1991, when crew and staff changed homeports to
San Diego. On 28 February 1994,
Coronado became the first combatant ship in the United States Navy to embark women as part of its regular, full-time crew.
Sea-Based Battle Lab In October 2001, the
Office of the Secretary of the Navy assigned
Coronado to host the Navy's Sea-Based
Battle Lab (SBBL), an afloat platform for testing prototype systems and software, evaluating future naval capabilities, and assessing operational compatibility and possible further implementation throughout the United States Navy. Developments in technology spawned significant advances in naval warfare capabilities. Wireless and web-based tools, along with new weapon systems, enabled naval forces to conduct precision operations with greater synchronization, expedience, and potency. With over of reconfigurable command space and one of the world's most advanced naval C4I suites, SBBL offered a unique shipboard environment that facilitates the evaluation of research for maritime and joint operations. The Third Fleet J9 Directorate was responsible for managing the SBBL. Partnered with other services, national laboratories, academia, and industry, the Third Fleet staff developed joint exercises and experiments for evaluating the following in an operational environment: • JTF Command Center organization and configuration • Tactics, techniques, and procedures • Naval and joint doctrine • Biometrics (human feature recognition) • Wireless applications • Knowledge management • Web-based applications • Logistics • Humanitarian assistance/disaster relief
Decommissioning and disposal Late 2003 saw a see-saw change for the
Coronado. In November the ship was decommissioned, transferred to the
Military Sealift Command and redesignated
T-AGF-11. However, it was concluded shortly thereafter that the operations the ship engaged in required it to be a warship and thus the vessel was transferred back to the Navy and recommissioned, but kept a large civilian complement within the crew from the MSC. In 2004, the
7th Fleet command ship, , went into dry dock and
Coronado temporarily assumed 7th Fleet command responsibilities. On 27 September 2004,
Blue Ridge returned to duty as the command ship.
Coronado was decommissioned at the end of Fiscal Year 2006. On 12 September 2012, the
Coronado was sunk by a number of warships, and now serves as an
artificial reef for the
Marianas region. The ship now rests deep at coordinates . == References ==