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The following was released by the Office of the Assistant to the
Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs):

                                           No. 405-94
                                           (703)697-5342(media)
                                           (703)697-3189(copies)
IMMEDIATE RELEASE      July 7, 1994        (703)697-
                                           5737(public/industry)

      NAVY TO COMMISSION MINE COUNTERMEASURES SHIP DEXTROUS
                            (MCM 13)

     The Department of the Navy will commission the mine
countermeasures ship Dextrous (MCM 13) in a ceremony to be held
on Saturday, July 9, 1994 at Naval Station, Ingleside, Texas,
commencing at 10 a.m.

     Representative Greg Laughlin will be the ceremony's
principal speaker.  Ms. Jacqueline Schafer, former Assistant
Secretary of the Navy for Installations and Environment, is the
ship's sponsor.

     Dextrous (MCM 13) commemorates the prior service of a
minecraft of the same name (AM 341) which earned five battle
stars for service during World War II.

          Dextrous is the 13th of 14 Avenger Class ships
authorized by Congress.  These ships will provide enhanced mine-
hunting, minesweeping and mine neutralization capabilities
through the use of advanced hull designs and state-of-the-art
combat systems as the Navy shifts focus away from open-ocean
warfare to operations in the littoral regions around the world,
"...From the Sea."

     The ship is powered by diesel engines that drive two
controllable, reversible pitch propellers.  It features a glass-
reinforced, plastic-sheathed wooden hull and degaussing system in
order to maintain a very low magnetic signature.  Dextrous is 224
feet in length, has a beam of 39 feet and displaces approximately
1,320 tons fully loaded.  The ship will carry a crew of six
officers and 76 enlisted personnel.  Lieutenant Commander Robert
I. McGrath, Jr., a native of Plainview, Texas, will be the ship's
commanding officer.
                               -USN-