The second USS Seattle (AOE-3), a Sacramento-class fast combat support ship, was laid down on 1 October 1965, at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Washington; launched on 2 March 1968; sponsored by Mrs. William M. Allen, chairman of the board of the Children's Orthopedic Hospital Association, Seattle; and commissioned on 5 April 1969, Capt. Bruce Keener III in command.