AVONDALE, LOUISIANA -- Legendary entertainer Bob Hope was on hand at the Shipyards Division of Avondale Industries, Inc., March 15, 1997, when his wife, Dolores, serving as sponsor, christened the huge 950-foot-long U. S. Navy Strategic Sealift ship USNS BOB HOPE in her husband's honor. The ceremony attracted many dignitaries from the military, government, industry, and entertainment fields. BOB HOPE (T-AKR 300) is the first of five Strategic Sealift ships Avondale is building for the Navy to support the nation's ability to deploy military equipment and supplies quickly to U. S. troops around the world. The ship's namesake is most appropriate, calling to mind Bob Hope's 50-year-plus commitment to providing U. S. troops worldwide with needed supplies of laughter, joy, and yes, hope. The roll-on/roll-off sealift ships Avondale is building will be some of the largest ships in the Navy fleet, second in size only to aircraft carriers. Longer than three football fields, BOB HOPE has a beam of 106 feet and displaces 62,069 long tons. With a draft of 34.5 feet, it is powered by 65,160-horsepower engines, and will cruise at speeds exceeding 24 knots. Scheduled for delivery in early 1998, the ship will have a crew of 95. The Navy's Strategic Sealift ships can carry up to 1,000 Army tanks and other types of military vehicles. They are designed and constructed with more than 300,000 square feet of cargo capacity for other equipment and supplies to provide prepositioning and surge sealift capacity to contingency areas worldwide. The big ships are built utilizing Avondale's modular construction technology, with each ship made up of more than 450 modules, or units. Each module ranges in weight from eight tons to more than 200 tons. Among the distinguished guests attending the BOB HOPE christening ceremony were the Honorable John H. Dalton, U. S. Secretary of the Navy, who was the principal speaker. When Secretary Dalton made the announcement in 1994 that the new class of Navy ships would be named for Bob Hope, he called Mr. Hope a "military hero", and said, "We can never repay him for his contributions to the men and women in uniform, but we can show our appreciation with a class of ships named in his honor. This is our way of saying, 'thanks for the memories'." Also delivering remarks at the christening were: the Honorable John W. Douglass, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development & Acquisitions; General Dennis J. Reimer, U. S. Army, Chief of Staff; Vice Admiral James Blenn Perkins, III, USN, Commander, Military Sealift Command; and Rear Admiral David Sargent, Jr., USN, Program Executive Officer for Carriers, Littoral Warfare & Auxiliary Ships, Naval Sea Systems Command. Other dignitaries in attendance were: the Honorable Robert M. Walker, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Logistics and Environment; Admiral Harold W. Gehman, Jr., USN, Vice Chief of Naval Operations; General Walter Kross, U. S. Air Force, Commander - in - Chief of U. S. Transportation Command; Brigadier General Boyd E. King, Jr., U. S. Army, Director of Transportation, Energy and Troop Support; and Brigadier General Gilbert Harper, U. S. Army, Commander, Military Traffic Management, Eastern Area. Also attending were family members and friends of the Hopes, including General (U. S. Army, Ret.) and Mrs. William Westmoreland; and Mr. and Mrs. Alex Spanos, owners of the NFL San Diego Chargers. Mr. Albert L. Bossier, Jr., Chairman, President and CEO of Avondale Industries, Inc., welcomed the distinguished guests to the christening. Captain Fred R. Zobel, Chaplain Corps, U. S. Navy, delivered the Invocation. Other christening principles were the Matron of Honor, Mrs. Mildred Malatesta, sister of Mrs. Hope, and Miss Emily Sophia Winter, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edward L. Winter, who was the Flower Girl. Mr. Winter works in the Human Resources Department at Avondale, and traditionally, the flower girls at Avondale christenings are the daughters of Avondale employees. Colors were presented by an all-services Color Guard from New Orleans, and the side boys were provided by the Navy Supervisor of Shipbuilding New Orleans. Music for the occasion was performed by the Navy Band New Orleans. Avondale received a contract worth an estimated $240 million in December 1996 to build a fifth Sealift ship, which is expected to be completed in the year 2000. The remaining Navy option for a sixth ship is exercisable over the next year. Peak production on the sealift vessels is anticipated to ensure work for approximately 3,000 Avondale employees into the next century. Avondale Industries, Inc., headquartered in metro New Orleans, is one of the nation's leading shipbuilders and marine fabricators - designing, building, and overhauling both military and commercial ships. Avondale also builds boats and barges, and a wide range of industrial facilities and components for land-based plants.