USNS Dutton T-AGS-22 was converted from the WWII Victory ship SS Tuskegee Victory. Tuskegee Victory was a type VC2-S-AP3 cargo hull, built in 1945 by the Oregon Shipbuilding Co., Portland OR, Maritime Commission hull number (MCV) 682. Her keel was laid on Mar 27, 1945 and she was delivered on Jun 5, 1945, an incredible construction time of 70 days!

SS Tuskegee Victory was leased to various commercial shipping companies and served in both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans until September, 1953, when she was placed in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River, Lee Hall, VA.

In 1957 she was removed from reserve status and converted to an Oceanographic Survey Ship (AGS) at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard from 8 Nov 1957 to 16 Nov 1958. On 1 November, 1958, Tuskegee Victory was renamed after the navigator and author Captain Benjamin Dutton, USN, and accepted into service for the U.S. Navy by Commander, Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) Atlantic. USNS Dutton T-AGS-22 underwent shakedown cruises and training in Narragansett Bay and the Caribbean Sea after which she began survey operations in the Mediterranean Sea and Northern European waters.

Dutton continued to perform bathymetric, gravity and geomagnetic surveys of the Mediterranean Sea, Atlantic Ocean and later the Pacific Ocean until her retirement in September 1989. At the time of her retirement unconfirmed reports credit Dutton with the Guinness World Record for most miles under steam (she logged 2,471,758 survey miles plus an unknown number of transit miles).

Displacement: 4,420 Tons (Light)
Length Overall: 455'-3"
Beam: 62'-1 5/8"
Draft: 23 ft.
Speed: 16.5 kts.
Propulsion: Cross compound steam turbine with double reduction gear: 8,500hp
Single Screw, Diameter: 18'-3"
Fuel: Navy Special (Bunker "C") oil
Fuel capacity: 19,023.3 barrels (2882.3 tons)
Range: 21,300 miles

International Radio Call Sign and Signal Flag Hoist NQYF November-Quebec-Yankee-Foxtrot