_moored_to_a_buoy_at_Saipan%2c_Marianas%2c_circa_in_1945.jpg) USSPhaon (ARB-3), moored to a buoy in the harbor atSaipan,c. late 1944 to early August 1945. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name |
|
| Namesake | Phaon |
| Builder | Dravo Corporation,Neville Island, Pennsylvania |
| Laid down | 17 September 1942 |
| Launched | 30 January 1943 |
| Sponsored by | Mrs. Marion D. Calabreeze |
| Commissioned | 5 August 1943 |
| Decommissioned | January 1947 |
| Reclassified | Battle Damage Repair Ship, 25 January 1943 |
| Stricken | 1 July 1961 |
| Identification |
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| Honors & awards | 3 ×battle stars (World War II) |
| Fate |
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| General characteristics[1] | |
| Class & type |
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| Displacement | |
| Length | 328 ft (100 m)oa |
| Beam | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Draft | 11 ft 2 in (3.40 m) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion |
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| Speed | 11.6 kn (21.5 km/h; 13.3 mph) |
| Complement | 20 officers, 234 enlisted men |
| Armament | |
| Service record | |
| Operations: |
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| Awards: | |
USSPhaon (ARB-3) was planned as aUnited States NavyLST-1-classtank landing ship, but was redesignated as one of twelveAristaeus-class battle damage repair ships built for theUnited States Navy during World War II. Named forPhaon (inGreek mythology, a boatman ofMitylene inLesbos), she was the only US Naval vessel to bear the name.
Laid down asLST-15 on 17 September 1942, by theDravo Corporation inPittsburgh, Pennsylvania; reclassified as a battle damage repair ship 25 January 1943; launched 30 January 1943;[1] sponsored by Mrs. Marion D. Calabreeze;[2] converted atTampa, Florida, by theTampa Shipbuilding Company for service as a battle damage repair ship; and commissioned 5 August 1943.[1]
As an ex-LST,Phaon had heavier armament, greater deck facilities for cargo handling, and a much longer superstructure deck, though in this case the tank deck was covered with lathes, grinders, drills, metal cutters, welding machines and other shop equipment not found on an LST.[2]
Aftershakedown toNew Orleans, and final fitting out there, she sailed 3 September, viaGuantanamo Bay and thePanama Canal forSamoa, anchoring inPago Pago Harbor on 13 October.[2]
From Samoa,Phaon moved toFunafuti in theEllice Islands, arriving there shortly after the occupation of that island on 18 October. There, she repairedLCTs,pontoonbarges, andpatrol torpedo (PT) boats. She restored many craft used in theinvasion of Tarawa,Gilbert Islands.[2]
From Funafuti,Phaon advanced westward toMajuro in theMarshall Islands, arriving 6 February 1944, shortly after the invasion. Here, in the same harbor with one of the mightiest fleets ever assembled,Phaon worked onminelayers,tankers,minesweepers,destroyers, and small boats (LCVPs andLCMs). On 18 March 1944,Phaon weighed anchor again, proceeded viaKwajalein toEniwetok in the Marshalls, arriving 23 March for repair work on small boats, LCTs, and yard minesweepers.[2]
On 9 June 1944,Phaon left Eniwetok, arriving on 15 June, atSaipan, for the invasion. There, on"D-Day" plus three, thedestroyerPhelps came alongside for repairs and many other ships thereafter. As metalsmiths, mechanics, and carpenters fromPhaon swarmed overPhelps repairing the damaged boiler, blower, deck and bulkheads, the sturdy warship was still very much in the fight, blasting away at enemy troops andpillboxes.[2]
On 24 June, during an air raid byJapaneseG4M "Betties",Phaon suffered a near-miss on the starboard side. The damage to the ship was not very serious but the shrapnel fragments killed two of her men and injured eleven others. That day, she worked on aPCS and twoLCIs, also repairing other small craft in preparation for theinvasion of Tinian. On 24 July, the morning of the Tinian invasion, the destroyerNorman Scott came alongside, with numerous dead and wounded officers and men. She had suffered several direct hits from a Japanese six-inch (152 mm) shore battery and her bridge was practically torn away. WhilePhaon's medical department cared for the wounded, her repair department patched up the ship, enablingNorman Scott to pull away two days later.[2]
The securing of Saipan by no means endedPhaon's work there. Saipan was her last invasion, but she prepared and repaired ships forIwo Jima,Okinawa, and thePhilippines. During the month between theinvasions of Iwo Jima andOkinawa,Phaon worked on 96 different ships. AfterV-J Day, her work was still far from finished and she continued repairing and overhauling the ships that needed it.[2]
On 28 December 1945,Phaon was ordered back to the United States. In 29 months away, she had completed approximately 2,000 repair jobs, on almost everything from small boats tobattleships.[2]
Phaon was assigned toOperation Crossroads, the atomic bomb tests atBikini Atoll, in July 1946, with the Repair and Service Unit.[1]
She was decommissioned and placed inreserve on 15 January 1947, berthed atSan Diego, struck from theNaval Vessel Register on 1 July 1961, and sold for scrapping on 8 July 1962 toZidell Explorations, Inc. ofPortland, Oregon.[2]
Phaon received threebattle stars for World War II service.[2]
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
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 United States NavyLST-1-classtank landing ships |
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| United States Navy LST-542-classtank landing ships |
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