USNS Stalwart ( T - AGOS - 1 ) USNS " Stalwart " ( T - AGOS - 1 ) was a Modified Tactical Auxiliary General Ocean Surveillance Ship and the lead ship of the her class . " Stalwart " was laid down on 3 November 1982 by the Tacoma Boat Building Company . She was launched on 11 July 1983 , and entered service with the United States Military Sealift Command on 12 April 1984 . The ship served as an anti - submarine surveillance ship during the Cold War , then as an anti - drug smuggling vessel as part of the United States ' War on Drugs . " Stalwart " left military service on 15 November 2002 , and was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 2 December 2002 . She was donated to the State University of New York Maritime College ( SUNY - Maritime ) , and was renamed SUNY Maritime . She was sold in 2011 to Stabbert Maritime and sent to Norfolk Shipyards for restoration and renamed R / V Ocean Stalwart . Design and construction . " Stalwart " was laid down on 3 November 1982 by the Tacoma Boat Building Company , in Tacoma , Washington . She was launched on 11 July 1983 , and entered service with the United States Military Sealift Command on 12 April 1984 . " Stalwart " and her sister ships were designed to collect underwater acoustical data in support of Cold War anti - submarine warfare operations in the 1980s . The main equipment used for this role was the Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System ( SURTASS ) , a collection of acoustic sensors that process and transmit data by satellite to shore bases for in - depth analysis . SURTASS is a neutrally buoyant , array deployed on a tow cable , capable of operating between in depth . Operating history . Military Sealift Command . " Stalwart " spent the first part of her career on patrol for Soviet Navy submarines . In 1993 , " Stalwart " and two sister ships , USNS " Indomitable " and USNS " Capable " , were converted to serve in the War on Drugs under Joint Interagency Task Force - East . The SURTASS sensors were replaced by an AN / SPS - 49 long range air search radar and Link 11 system , to aid in location of drug smugglers . " Stalwart " left military service on 15 November 2002 , and was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 2 December 2002 . SUNY - Maritime . After she was struck from the Naval Vessel Register , STALWART , was placed under the control of the U . S . Maritime Administration , who then donated her to SUNY - Maritime for potential use in small vessel operations , watch standing and training . The vessel has also been used in recent years by various federal , state and local groups for practical training in firefighting , search and rescue , and port security . Initial thoughts of upgrading the vessel to an operational training vessel , or to use the vessel solely as a mobile security asset were not practical for the college , despite some efforts in procuring funding for these purposes . Instead the vessel had been used to a limited extent in her current condition and by various external groups , all with the college ’ s support . Although initially on her transfer to the Maritime College , some work was done on main engines and ship ’ s systems , there had been no later attempts at restoring the vessel and the college sought options of disposing of the vessel , for either scrap value or other purposes . Private Owner . On February 3 , 2011 , the USNS Stalwart left the SUNY Maritime pier by tugboat to be brought to Norfolk Shipyards to be restored at an estimated $ 14 million to Stabbert Maritime . Vessel is now R / V Ocean Stalwart .