USS Opportune ( ARS - 41 ) USS Opportune ( ARS - 41 ) was a Bolster - class rescue and salvage ship acquired by the U . S . Navy during World War II . Her task was to come to the aid of stricken vessels . " Opportune " was laid down 13 September 1944 by Basalt Rock Company in Napa , California ; launched 31 March 1945 ; sponsored by Mrs . Kenneth Sanger ; and commissioned at Mare Island , California , 5 October 1945 , Lt . Comdr . Charles L . Knopp in command . Post - World War II operations . After training on the California coast , " Opportune " sailed from San Pedro , California , 11 December 1945 for San Juan , Puerto Rico , her base for the next eight years . Operating primarily as a salvage schoolship for the Atlantic Fleet , " Opportune " also towed disabled craft among Caribbean ports and on occasion , to Norfolk , Virginia , and New York . Frequently she acted as air - sea rescue tug during fleet operations off Culebra Island . North Atlantic operations . She made her homeport at Norfolk from 23 October 1953 . Each year she sailed north to take part in resupply operations for northern stations of the Army , Air Force , Navy , and Weather Service , often serving for extended periods as station ship at the Naval Air Station , Argentia , Newfoundland . On each such deployment she performed the variety of services which makes the fleet repair and salvage ship a Navy workhorse : towing barges and disabled craft ; repairing other ships , dock , and port facilities ; salvaging and lifting sunken ships and equipment ; laying cable ; fighting fires ; tending buoys ; providing deep sea divers ; installing moorings ; searching for and recovering downed aircraft ; and aiding men and ships in distress at sea . She carried out the same duties from Norfolk and in the Caribbean when not operating in the north . Goodwill missions . " Opportune " performed missions of international goodwill and mercy on her first European cruise ( April – June 1960 ) . She escorted two Iranian ships to the entrance of the Mediterranean , then sailed directly to Agadir , Morocco , where she delivered 50 tons of clothing donated by the Navy for victims of the recent earthquake . Princess Lasla Aisha , sister of the King of Morocco , came on board to thank " Opportune " for her aid . A second European cruise ( May – June 1961 ) represented a major contribution to the strengthening of the Navy ’ s power to keep peace . " Opportune ’ s " captain , Lt . Comdr . Thomas F . Byrnes , Jr . , took command of a task group which included four Navy and two civilian tugs . The assignment : tow to the Polaris Submarine Base at Holy Loch , Scotland , four large sections of " AFDB – 7 " , an enormous floating drydock . The 4 , 400 - mile passage began at Mayport , Florida , and took 32 days at sea at an average speed of 5 . 9 knots . This difficult mission accomplished , Opportune visited Belfast , Northern Ireland , before returning to Norfolk 23 June . East Coast operations . For the next three years the salvage ship operated on the U . S . East Coast and in the Caribbean , devoting most of her effort to cable laying operations . Highlights of this period were assistance to Norwegian ship " SS Tarrantel " which had been damaged in a collision off the entrance to Chesapeake Bay in the spring of 1962 ; service off Cape Canaveral , Florida , at the launch of Major Gordon Cooper ’ s “ Faith 7 ” Project Mercury space capsule a year later ; and searching for inactive destroyer escort " Fogg " ) DE - 57 ) , which had broken free during hurricane “ Jenny ” while being towed to Charleston , South Carolina , and escorting the maverick to safety at Norfolk late in October 1963 . Circumnavigating the globe . " Opportune " shed her cable laying gear at Norfolk the summer of 1964 and spent the remainder of the year supporting fleet training operations . After overhaul during the summer of 1965 , " Opportune " visited Scotland in the fall to take in tow a leased Royal Navy lift craft ALC - 24 for delivery to Subic Bay , Philippine Islands . She departed Rosyth 24 November and touched Gibraltar and Crete before transiting the Suez Canal . The long voyage ended when " Opportune " delivered her tow to Subic Bay 2 February 1966 . Underway again four days later , she made Yokosuka , Japan ; Pearl Harbor ; San Diego , California ; and Acapulco , Mexico en route to the Panama Canal . The ship reached Little Creek , Virginia , 8 April 1966 . She took pride in having completed the longest tow on record by a U . S . Navy salvage ship and in being the first Navy salvage ship to circumnavigate the globe . Continued operations . For the remainder of the year " Opportune " operated along the east coast visiting the Canal Zone in June and in August she returned to Cape Canaveral for the unmanned Apollo 202 launch . Into 1970 " Opportune " continued to serve the Atlantic Fleet . Decommissioning . " Opportune " was decommissioned and struck from the Naval Register , 30 April 1993 . Her title was transferred to the Maritime Administration ( MARAD ) , 1 February 1999 . " Opportune " was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet , James River , Fort Eustis , Virginia . Final Disposition : a contract for scrapping was awarded to Bay Bridge Enterprises , Chesapeake , Virginia , and " Opportune " was towed from the National Defense Reserve Fleet , James River to Bay Bridge Enterprises , Chesapeake , Virginia , 5 December 2003 . Military awards and honors . Navy records indicate the following battle stars for " Opportune " : Her crew was eligible for the following medals , ribbons and commendations :