USS AFDL-9

Evidence

16 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-16).

1. [1]Naval Vessel Register, Ship Details page for 'NO NAME (AFDL 9)', NAVSEA Shipbuilding Support Office (Wayback capture 2017-01-26 of nvr.navy.mil/SHIPDETAILS/SHIPSDETAIL_AFDL_9.HTML); corroborated by the 2016-09-27 Wayback capture of the NVR inactive-vessels list [other_primary]

   Locator

   NVR Ship Details 'NO NAME (AFDL 9)' - vessel status, milestone dates, custodian blocks (read verbatim from the archived page this session); Wayback https://web.archive.org/web/20160927035925/http://www.nvr.navy.mil/QUICKFIND/SHIPSDETAIL_INACTIVE_N.HTML

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Naval Vessel Register record (2017-01-26 Wayback capture of the NVR detail page): 'NO NAME (AFDL 9) (ex - AFD 9), SMALL AUXILIARY FLOATING DRY DOCK (N-S-P)', class field 'AFDL 1', UIC 14809, builder 'Chicago Bridge & Iron Co.', status 'Disposed of, by Navy Sale', date status changed 10/01/1982, hull material 'Steel hull, steel superstructure', propulsion type 'none', custodian category 'SCHOOLS, ORGANIZATIONS AND PRIVATE ENTERPRISES'. Award, delivery, decommission, keel, launch, commission, inactivation, and stricken milestone fields all blank; physical-characteristics fields blank; page last updated 09/08/2000. The 2016 Wayback capture of the NVR inactive-hulls list independently carries 'NO NAME | AFDL 9 | 10/01/1982 | Disposed of by Navy Sale'. The live NVR detail URL now serves a restructured page that does not render these fields; the archived capture is the record relied on.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   registry record; status change 1982-10-01; page updated 2000-09-08

   Limitations

   Authoritative U.S. Navy registry record (archived official page read verbatim). Establishes identity (including 'ex - AFD 9' consolidating the earlier designation into this record per task instruction), builder corporate name, UIC, disposal method (Navy sale), and the 1982-10-01 disposal date. Contains no asbestos, materials, or environmental information; all milestone-date fields blank, so commissioning/striking/service dates rest on NavSource and other secondaries; the blank characteristics block means dimensions/capacity rest on the Ships' Data tabulation. The NVR does not name the sale recipient or scrapping site.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-01

2. [2]NavSource Naval History, Service Ship Photo Archive, 'AFDL-9 ex USS AFD-9' page (09/28/2859.htm, last updated 4 April 2014) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Page header chronology block; awards block; specifications block; image table ('no images' note); 'no DANFS history' note

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive page 'AFDL-9 ex USS AFD-9 (1943 - 1946)' (09/28/2859.htm) supplies the only located chronology: 'Laid down, date unknown, at Morgan City, LA. by Chicago Bridge and Iron; Delivered and commissioned USS AFD-9 in December 1943; Decommissioned and placed in service, date unknown; Redesignated AFDL-9, 1 August 1946; Placed out of service, date unknown; Struck from the Naval Register, date unknown; Final Disposition, scrapped in 1982.' Awards block: American Campaign Medal and World War II Victory Medal only. Specifications block: displacement 800 t., length 200', beam 64', inside width 45', draft 3' 3" (lt) / 31' 4" (flooded), lifting capacity 1,900 tons. 'There are no images of USS AFD-9 / AFDL-9 available at NavSource' and 'There is no DANFS history available for USS AFD-9 / AFDL-9 at NavSource.'

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943-1982

   Population

   Dock operating crew (wartime repair-base service per ev-06/ev-07); awards cohort (American Campaign Medal + WWII Victory Medal)

   Limitations

   Secondary compilation and the only chronology located for this hull - there is no DANFS entry and no Wikipedia article to corroborate. Its spec block mixes type figures: 200-ft length matches the standard AFD documented in the official April 1945 tabulation, but the '1,900 tons' lifting capacity is the lengthened-AFDL figure - Ships' Data tabulates AFD9 at 1,000 tons (see correction row ev-08). 'Scrapped in 1982' aligns with the NVR 1982-10-01 Navy-sale disposal. 'Commissioned' language rests on this one secondary source against the service-craft convention (NVR commission field blank). No asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-02

3. [3]Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, 1945, Volume III (NAVSHIPS 250-012, dated April 15, 1945), Floating Dry Dock Characteristics table, p. 607 - AFD9 row (Google Books scan mirrored at shipscribe.com); footnote 7 text from the end of the table (p. 611); footnote 1 'Docks for which location is not given are assigned to advance bases' [other_primary]

   Locator

   p. 607, 'Nav Repbase, San Diego, Calif.' location-group rows incl. AFD9, read directly from the rendered page scan (PDF p. 626); footnote block at end of table (printed p. 611); the table's footnote 1 defines the Location column's convention

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The official Navy tabulation lists this dock in its wartime registry form: 'AFD9' appears in the Floating Dry Dock Characteristics table grouped at 'Nav Repbase, San Diego, Calif.' (within the AFD1-AFD18 run on p. 607 alongside AFD5, AFD6, AFD8, AFD10, AFD11, AFD12-16, AFD17, AFD18 and others, the AFD19-AFD31 run continuing on p. 608 under the same San Diego repair-base group), the row carrying footnote marker 7 ('Military docks. All other docks are non-military.'), type '1-piece, steel', nominal lifted capacity 1,000 tons, suitable for docking 'YN, AM' (net tenders and minesweepers), length overall 200 ft, length on pontoon 185 ft, width overall molded 64 ft, width clear inside 45 ft, draft over blocks 14 ft 6 in, maximum draft submerged 27 ft, draft light 3 ft 5 in, construction start 1943 / finish 1944. Read directly from the rendered page scan this session. The same volume's list of naval vessels places AFD9 inside the standard-dock run - not among the lengthened AFDL7/22/23/32/33 hulls.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1945 (tabulation dated April 15, 1945)

   Population

   Dock operating crew and ships' companies of docked net tenders/minesweepers (tabulated station)

   Limitations

   Official contemporaneous tabulation read directly from the scan - establishes the dock's wartime designation (AFD9, a standard 200-ft/1,000-ton military dock), its rated craft (YN net tenders, AM minesweepers), and its April-1945 tabulated location (Naval Repair Base, San Diego). This is the controlling source against NavSource's 1,900-ton spec-block figure and against any lengthened-dock characterization of this hull. The 'Location' semantics carry a caveat: footnote 1 ties the column to operating assignment, but the uniform San Diego grouping of the entire AFD1-18 block - including this dock, which official BuDocks history and an NHHC photo place at Noumea (ev-06, ev-07) - leaves open whether the column reflects physical station, administrative assignment, or staging status; the conflict is carried unresolved in ev-06's limitations and in gaps. The table does not document where the dock was before April 1945 or after the table's date. No asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-03

4. [4]shipbuildinghistory.com, 'Floating Docks (AFDB, AFDM, AFDL, ARD, ARDM, YFD)' table (auxafd.htm, updated 2019-06-11) and 'Chicago Bridge & Iron' yard table (shipyards/emergencylarge/chicagobridge.htm) [other_primary]

   Locator

   auxafd.htm AFDL section, AFDL-9 row ('AFDL 9 | Chicago Bridge | Morgan City LA | 800 | 200 | Nov-43 | Scrapped 1982'); chicagobridge.htm AFD delivery block, 'AFD 9/AFDL 9 ... 5/44 ... Scrapped 1982' row

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   shipbuildinghistory.com (Tim Colton compilation) carries this hull twice: the Navy floating-dock table lists 'AFDL 9 | (no name) | Chicago Bridge | Morgan City LA | 800 | 200 | Nov-43 | Scrapped 1982', and the Chicago Bridge & Iron yard table lists 'AFD 9/AFDL 9 | U.S. Navy | Floating Dock, Light | delivered 5/44 | Scrapped 1982' - confirming builder (Chicago Bridge & Iron), type, Morgan City yard attribution, and 1982 scrapping, while its two tables disagree on delivery/completion date (Nov-43 vs 5/44) and both differ from NavSource's December 1943 commissioning.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943-1982

   Population

   CB&I construction workforce (Morgan City, 1943-44)

   Limitations

   Secondary compilation, used only where consistent with official sources - its Morgan City attribution agrees with NavSource here (both secondaries concur; no DANFS exists to adjudicate, and the same table's Morgan City attribution for sister AFDL-2 was overturned by dated NARA construction photographs - the uncertainty is flagged, not resolved). The Nov-43 vs 5/44 vs Dec-43 date disagreement across its own tables and NavSource is carried in gaps. Its '800' figure is displacement tonnage, not lifting capacity (the official table gives 1,000-ton lift). No asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-04

5. [5]Bureau of Yards and Docks, 'Building the Navy's Bases in World War II' (U.S. Navy, 1947), Chapter IX, Floating Drydocks (HyperWar/ibiblio transcription) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Chapter IX, 'Types of Floating Drydocks' glossary - 'AFD -- Auxiliary Floating Dock' definition, ARD-1 design paragraph (diesel-electric power plant, repair shops, crew's accommodations), the AFD dimensions paragraph ('200 feet long and 64 feet wide... 45 feet'), the five-dock lengthening paragraph, and the 1946 reclassification paragraph ('the AFD's became AFDL's')

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The official Bureau of Yards and Docks history defines this hull's type and the 1946 redesignation that produced 'AFDL-9': AFDs were 'Mobile, military, steel trough type, unit dock[s], with faired bow and stern, of 1,000 tons lifting capacity' - the ARD-1 design lineage equipped 'with its own diesel-electric power plant, pumping plant, repair shops, and crew's accommodations.' Standard AFDs ran '200 feet long and 64 feet wide, with a clear width inside the wing walls of 45 feet' and were 'fully self-contained, with diesel electric power plants, and contained limited repair facilities.' Only five AFDs were 'modified by adding an 88-foot section amidships' to 288 ft / 1,900-ton lift (the wartime 'AFDL - Lengthened' set). Under the 1946 nomenclature revision 'the AFD's became AFDL's' (Auxiliary Floating Drydock Little, under 10,000 tons) - matching NavSource's redesignation date of 1946-08-01 for this hull.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1941-1946

   Population

   Construction trades at the contractor plants; dock crews (type context)

   Limitations

   Class/design history, not a hull record - the BuDocks history does not name this dock; its application is via the Ships' Data tabulation listing AFD9 as a standard AFD (ev-03) and the documented 1946 blanket reclassification. The wartime 'AFDL' (Lengthened) type does not apply to this hull - she is a standard AFD that became 'AFDL' only through the 1946 'Little' reclassification. No asbestos information in the source.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-05

6. [6]Bureau of Yards and Docks, 'Building the Navy's Bases in World War II' (U.S. Navy, 1947), Chapter XXIV, Bases in the South Pacific - Noumea section (HyperWar/ibiblio transcription) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Chapter XXIV, Noumea repair-base paragraph - 'A 300-by-70-foot pontoon pier and a 30-by-141-foot small-boat pontoon pier were provided, as well as ARD-2 and AFD-9' (read verbatim from the fetched chapter this session)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The official Bureau of Yards and Docks history names this hull at the Noumea, New Caledonia repair base: describing Naval Base Noumea's repair-base development on Ile Nou, it records 'At the repair base, facilities were provided for the repair and servicing of vessels as large as destroyers, and the base was also equipped to go into the stream and make repairs and alterations to vessels of the transport type. ... A 300-by-70-foot pontoon pier and a 30-by-141-foot small-boat pontoon pier were provided, as well as ARD-2 and AFD-9.' The passage sits inside the chapter's Noumea narrative of 1943-era Seabee construction (3rd Battalion work, aviation-fuel tank farm complete by October 1943).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943-1945 (base narrative period)

   Population

   Dock operating crew at the Noumea repair base; ships' companies of docked vessels (repair-base population)

   Limitations

   Official history naming this hull at Noumea - establishes that AFD-9 was provided to the Noumea repair base at some point in the base's wartime development, but gives no arrival or departure date. In unresolved tension with the official April 15, 1945 Ships' Data tabulation listing AFD9 in the 'Nav Repbase, San Diego, Calif.' location group (ev-03): both documents are official; sequential assignment (commissioned Morgan City Dec 1943, Pacific transit via a San Diego staging/repair-base listing, forward deployment to Noumea) is plausible but unproven, and an administrative-location reading of the Ships' Data column cannot be ruled out. The NHHC photograph caption (ev-07) corroborates physical presence at New Caledonia but is undated. Carried as an open conflict in gaps. No asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-06

7. [7]Naval History and Heritage Command photograph NH 86709 / catalog L45-193.04.01, as transcribed on NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive, USS PC-1228 / Munising page (12/011228.htm) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource PC-1228 page image caption block - 'PC-1228 prepares to enter Ship Repair Unit AD-40's floating drydock USS AFD-9 at New Caledonia, for overhaul and sound gear repairs / Naval History and Heritage Command photo Catalog L45-193.04.01' (NH 86709)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   An NHHC-cataloged photograph documents this dock in service at New Caledonia: Naval History and Heritage Command photo NH 86709 (catalog L45-193.04.01), captioned 'PC-1228 prepares to enter Ship Repair Unit AD-40's floating drydock USS AFD-9 at New Caledonia, for overhaul and sound gear repairs' - the caption names the hull as 'USS AFD-9' and the operating unit as Ship Repair Unit AD-40. The image and caption are carried on the NavSource page for USS PC-1228 / Munising (the dock's own NavSource page holds no images).

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   WWII (undated; PC-1228 served in the South Pacific 1944-45)

   Population

   AFD-9 dock crew and PC-1228 ship's company (docking for overhaul and sound-gear repair)

   Limitations

   NHHC-cataloged photograph verified via the NavSource transcription - the canonical NHHC catalog pages for NH 86709 and the L45 series return 404 and the original caption card was not retrieved, so the caption text is quoted at one remove (NavSource's transcription of the NHHC catalog entry). The caption is undated: it corroborates the dock's presence at New Caledonia under Ship Repair Unit AD-40 but does not date it, and therefore cannot order the Noumea deployment relative to the April 1945 San Diego tabulation (ev-03, ev-06). 'Ship Repair Unit AD-40' is the caption's wording for the operating organization. No asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-07

8. [8]Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, 1945, Vol. III p. 607 (1,000-ton AFD9 row; draft columns) and BuDocks Ch. IX (1,000-ton AFD definition; five-dock lengthening), contrasted with NavSource 2859.htm spec block ('1,900 tons'; 3'3"/31'4" drafts) and shipbuildinghistory auxafd/chicagobridge delivery dates (Nov-43 / 5/44) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Ships' Data p. 607 AFD9 row and draft columns; BuDocks Ch. IX lengthening paragraph; NavSource 2859.htm chronology and specifications blocks; shipbuildinghistory auxafd.htm AFDL-9 row and chicagobridge.htm AFD-9/AFDL-9 row

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Correction of propagating secondary-source discrepancies on this hull. (a) Lifting capacity: NavSource's spec block gives '1,900 tons' - the lengthened-AFDL figure - on a hull it simultaneously lists at 200 ft length; the official April 1945 Ships' Data table gives AFD9 at 1,000 tons / 200 ft as a standard AFD, and BuDocks defines the standard AFD at 1,000 tons (1,900 tons applies only to the five 88-ft-lengthened docks). The 1,900-ton figure is rejected. (b) Completion/delivery dating: NavSource 'Delivered and commissioned USS AFD-9 in December 1943' vs shipbuildinghistory auxafd 'Nov-43' vs the same compilation's CB&I yard table 'delivered 5/44' - three inconsistent dates across two secondary sources; the December 1943 commissioning is carried as the task-specified identity date consistent with NavSource, and the spread is logged in gaps rather than resolved. (c) Draft figures: NavSource '3' 3" (lt) / 31' 4" (flooded)' vs the official table's draft light 3 ft 5 in / maximum draft submerged 27 ft - minor divergences consistent with measurement-convention differences; official values carried.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   correction

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943-1982; secondary-source era ongoing

   Limitations

   Corrects secondary-source conflicts against official records - does not itself assert new facts. The lengthened-dock figures (1,900-ton lift / 288 ft) belong to the five wartime-modified docks, not this standard AFD. The delivery-date spread cannot be fully resolved without the CB&I contract file or a delivery instrument. Asbestos content is unaffected either way. The San Diego/Noumea station conflict is NOT corrected here - it is a conflict between two official sources and is carried open (ev-03, ev-06, gaps).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-08

9. [9]National Archives and Records Administration, Special List 44 by Ship Numbers (RG 24, Bureau of Naval Personnel deck logs) [other_primary]

   Locator

   sl-44-ship-number.pdf, AFD block (entries run AFD-15 through AFD-30 plus AFDL-21/-29/-32; no AFD-9/AFDL-9 entries) - verified by direct text extraction this session

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   NARA Special List 44 (List of Logbooks of U.S. Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947) contains no deck-log entries for AFD-9 or AFDL-9: the by-number list's AFD block begins at AFD-15 and runs through AFD-30, with AFDL-21, AFDL-29, and AFDL-32 the only AFDL entries. Sister docks such as AFD-25 do have listed logs, so the absence is specific to this hull - consistent with station-administered logging at a repair base (Naval Repair Base San Diego or the Noumea advance base) rather than hull-level log retention.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943-1947 coverage

   Limitations

   SL-44 covers 1801-1947 only, so post-1947 logs would not appear here regardless; the absence means no hull-level wartime log series was indexed for this dock. Naval Repair Base San Diego station records and Noumea/Ile Nou advance-base records (RG 181 and successor RGs, unsearched) remain the plausible holdings. Absence from the list is a record-availability finding, not proof no logs were kept - and no asbestos content would be implied by any logbook in any case.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-09

10. [10]National Archives and Records Administration, Ship Plan Index (archives.gov/research/cartographic/ship-index) [other_primary]

    Locator

    Ship Plan Index AFDL-9 row: 'AFDL-9 | AFDL-9 | 385 | Microfilm | 63531026' (catalog.archives.gov/id/63531026)

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    NARA Cartographic Ship Plan Index holds a plan for AFDL-9: entry 'AFDL-9 | AFDL-9 | 385 | Microfilm | 63531026' (RG 385, Naval Facilities Engineering Command records) - the same microfilm NAID cited for sister docks across the AFDL run (AFDL-1 through AFDL-42 and AFDL-47 appear on the reel), a shared reel of AFDL-type plans and a potential machinery-layout/materials source.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    context_only

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    1943-44 design era records

    Limitations

    Record-holding mapping only - the microfilm was not retrieved or read (no reproduction spend authorized). Whether the plan set contains insulation or materials schedules is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-10

11. [11]Bureau of Yards and Docks, 'Building the Navy's Bases in World War II,' Ch. IX (design description of the AFD type); era asbestos framing per Corn & Starr (see ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-12) [other_primary]

    Locator

    Chapter IX, AFD/ARD-1 design description (diesel-electric power plant, pumping plant, repair shops, crew's accommodations)

    Finding type

    asbestos_application

    Finding

    Class/era inference only: the standard AFD design carried a diesel-electric power plant, ballast/pumping machinery, repair shops, and crew accommodations within a welded-steel trough dock built in 1943-44 for the U.S. Navy - a period when Navy construction specifications and supply routinely included asbestos-containing gaskets, packing, electrical insulation, millboard, and thermal insulation for machinery and piping. The dock's documented mission - docking small combatants (net tenders, minesweepers, and patrol craft such as PC-1228) at a wartime repair base - placed her crew in sustained contact with era vessels whose own hull-insulation suites commonly contained asbestos, and docking/repair work itself (scaling, welding, refit alongside hulls) is a recognized disturbance pathway.

    Verification

    inferred

    Role

    supporting

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    1943-44 construction era; service through 1982

    Population

    Construction trades (CB&I Morgan City yard, 1943-44); dock crew at the wartime repair base(s) (San Diego tabulation / Noumea documentation); crews of vessels under repair

    Limitations

    Design-level inference, not a hull record - the BuDocks history does not mention asbestos and does not name this dock. Asbestos presence aboard AFDL-9 is inferred from era construction practice and onboard machinery, not proven; a non-propelled floating dock had a far smaller machinery and inhabited-space footprint than a steam vessel, and its asbestos loading would correspondingly be lower. Establishes nothing about quantity, condition, presence aboard the hull, individual exposure, or causation.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-11

12. [12]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]

    Locator

    Abstract and article, AJIM 11(3):359-373

    Finding type

    asbestos_application

    Finding

    Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the program and era under which this Navy-contracted floating dock was built - with wartime demand driving unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard government and contract hulls.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    context

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    1940s era documented; article 1987

    Population

    WWII shipyard workers and vessel crews (class context)

    Limitations

    Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this dock, does not address floating drydocks specifically, and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-12

13. [13]Batch-607 search ledger (this record): CourtListener API v4 '"AFDL-9"' and '"AFD-9"' type=o queries (count 0 each); broad 'AFDL-9' docket/RECAP query (58 results, all noise - inspected incl. the asbestos MDL tag-along naming AFDL-5/AFDL-7); follow-on docket queries HTTP 429 [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-11 through sl-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-14

    Finding type

    litigation_documented

    Finding

    Litigation and name-collision sweep: live CourtListener API v4 opinion queries for '"AFDL-9"' and '"AFD-9"' each returned count 0 (verified this session); a broad API docket/RECAP search for 'AFDL-9' returned 58 results, all classified as name collisions or unrelated litigation - including a Guam asbestos MDL tag-along docket whose vessel list was inspected and names AFDL-5 and AFDL-7, not AFDL-9. Follow-on docket-type queries were throttled (HTTP 429, shared 125/day quota) and deferred per the backoff rule. 'AFD-9'/'AFDL-9' collides with non-vessel strings (exhibit/part numbering, AFD abbreviations incl. British Admiralty Floating Dock references); the unnamed hull has no name-collision exposure beyond the designation strings. Any future hit requires hull resolution before classification.

    Verification

    partial

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    2026-09-20

    Limitations

    Sweep partially complete - the exact-name opinion queries returned authoritative zeros and the broad RECAP sweep's 58 hits were all inspected/classified as non-qualifying (none is asbestos litigation naming this hull; the one asbestos-adjacent docket names sister docks AFDL-5/AFDL-7 only). Docket-level coverage is incomplete: follow-on queries were quota-blocked (429) and deferred per the backoff rule, so a docket naming this dock in a corpus the broad query missed cannot be excluded. Absence of a located pleading is not proof no claim ever existed. No asbestos opinion naming this dock was found by any instrument used.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-13

14. [14]Keller v. Dravo Corp., 441 F.2d 1239 (5th Cir. 1971), cert. denied 404 U.S. 1017, 92 S.Ct. 679, 30 L.Ed.2d 665 (1972) [court_record]

    Locator

    Opinion at 441 F.2d 1243-44 (vessel-status holding); reporter citation cross-verified via multiple case-law databases; carried under the established batch-583/588/605/606 convention for floating-drydock records

    Finding type

    litigation_documented

    Finding

    Litigation-posture context for the vessel type (not this hull, not asbestos): Fifth Circuit doctrine holds that 'as a matter of law, a floating dry dock is not a vessel when it is moored and in use as a dry dock' - Keller v. Dravo Corp., 441 F.2d 1239, 1244 (5th Cir. 1971), cert. denied 404 U.S. 1017 (1972), following Atkins v. Greenville Shipping Corp., 411 F.2d 279 (5th Cir. 1969) and Chahoc v. Hunt Shipyard, 431 F.2d 576 (5th Cir. 1970). Workers injured on moored floating drydocks were accordingly confined to Longshoremen's and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act remedies rather than vessel-owner negligence/unseaworthiness theories.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    context

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    1969-1972 (doctrine); applies to moored-dock operations

    Population

    Floating-drydock workers generally (type context)

    Limitations

    Doctrinal context for the vessel type only - an LHWCA/admiralty vessel-status ruling, not asbestos litigation, not naming this hull, and not an exposure finding. Relevant to how injury claims by drydock crews were channeled; the Keller court expressly declined an absolute rule that a floating drydock can never be a vessel. Citation verified against reporter text reproduced in case-law databases; a direct CourtListener pull remains an open lead.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-14

15. [15]Batch-607 search ledger (this record): NVR archived detail + inactive list; NavSource 09/28/2859.htm; shipbuildinghistory auxafd/chicagobridge tables; Ships' Data 1945 Vol. III pp. 607-608, 611; NARA SL-44 and Ship Plan Index; BuDocks Ch. IX and Ch. XXIV; NHHC photo NH 86709/L45-193.04.01 via NavSource; CourtListener API + web-indexed litigation sweeps; MARAD ShipHistory (blocked) [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-01 through sl-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-18

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, materials schedule, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming AFD-9/AFDL-9 was found in the public sources searched - the archived NVR record, the NavSource page, the Ships' Data 1945 tabulation, the shipbuildinghistory tables, the NARA indexes, the BuDocks type and base histories, the NHHC photo caption, and the litigation sweep contain no asbestos or insulation-material statement.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    2026-09-20

    Limitations

    Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1943-44 self-contained Navy dock with diesel-electric machinery and repair shops is era-consistent with retained asbestos-containing materials. Because she was scrapped in 1982 there is no disposal-era hazmat survey or museum disclosure to consult; the 1982 Navy-sale instrument (buyer, hazmat terms) is unlocated. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-15

16. [16]NARA Ship Plan Index entry 'AFDL-9 | 385 | Microfilm | 63531026'; NARA RG 24/RG 181 logbook scope per Special List 44 absence; NVR custodian/disposal fields (ev-01); NHHC photo NH 86709/L45-193.04.01 via NavSource (ev-07) [other_primary]

    Locator

    Ship Plan Index AFDL-9 line; sl-44 index absence for AFD-9/AFDL-9; NVR custodian block; NavSource PC-1228 page NH 86709 caption

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    Archival leads (not retrieved): (a) NARA cartographic Ship Plan Index holds an AFDL-9 plan on microfilm, NAID 63531026 (RG 385) - a potential materials/machinery-layout source; (b) Naval Repair Base San Diego station records and Noumea/Ile Nou advance-base records (RG 181 and successor RGs) may hold the dock's operational records given the absence of hull-level logs in Special List 44, and could order the San Diego/Noumea assignment sequence; (c) Ship Repair Unit AD-40 records would document the operating organization named in the NHHC photo caption; (d) the 1982 Navy-sale instrument (DRMS/DLA sale file) would identify the buyer, price, scrapping site, and any hazmat disclosure; (e) the BuShips/BuDocks contract file for the CB&I AFD order would settle the Morgan City attribution and the Nov-43/Dec-43/5-44 date spread definitively; (f) the NH 86709 original caption card at NHHC would date the New Caledonia photograph.

    Verification

    unverified

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    context_only

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    1943-1982 records

    Limitations

    Record-holding mapping only - no document-level retrieval performed (no reproduction spend authorized; none of these holdings are digitized in the located indexes). Whether any contains asbestos-specific information for this dock is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-afdl-9-afdl9-16