USS Skill (MSO-471)

History
United States
Name	USS Skill
Builder	Luders Marine Construction Co., Stamford, Connecticut
Laid down	17 August 1953, as AM-471
Launched	3 April 1955
Commissioned	7 November 1955
Decommissioned	October 1970
Reclassified	MSO-471 (Ocean Minesweeper), 7 February 1955
Fate	Sold for scrapping, 1 April 1979.
General characteristics
Class and type	Aggressive-class minesweeper
Displacement	630 long tons (640 t) light 755 long tons (767 t) full load
Length	172 ft (52 m)
Beam	36 ft (11 m)
Draft	10 ft (3 m)
Propulsion	4 × Packard ID1700 diesel engines 2 × shafts 2 × controllable pitch propellers
Speed	15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement	6 officers, 74 enlisted
Armament	1 × single 40 mm gun mount (later replaced by 1 × twin 20 mm gun mount) 2 × .50 cal (12.7 mm) twin Browning M2 machine guns

USS Skill (MSO-471) was an Aggressive-class minesweeper acquired by the U.S. Navy for the task of removing mines that had been placed in the water to prevent the safe passage of ships.

Skill was the second U.S. Navy vessel of that name. It was an ocean minesweeper, laid down by Luders Marine Construction Co., Stamford, Connecticut, on 17 August 1953 under the designation AM-471; redesignated MSO-471 on 7 February 1955; launched on 3 April 1955; sponsored by Mrs. John C. Niedermair; and commissioned on 7 November 1955.