_in_June_1945.jpg) USSRabaul after her launch, 14 July 1945 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSRabaul |
| Builder | Todd Pacific Shipyards |
| Laid down | 29 January 1945 |
| Launched | 14 June 1945 |
| Acquired | 30 August 1946 |
| Stricken | 1 September 1971 |
| Fate | Sold for scrapping, 25 August 1972 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Commencement Bay-classescort carrier |
| Displacement | 21,397long tons (21,740 t) |
| Length | 557 ft 1 in (169.80 m)loa |
| Beam | 75 ft (23 m) |
| Draft | 32 ft (9.8 m) |
| Installed power | |
| Propulsion | |
| Speed | 19knots (35 km/h; 22 mph) |
| Complement | 1,066 |
| Armament | |
| Aircraft carried | 33 |
| Aviation facilities | 2 ×aircraft catapults |
USSRabaul was aCommencement Bay-classescort carrier of theUnited States Navy. TheCommencement Bay class were built duringWorld War II, and were an improvement over the earlierSangamon class, which were converted fromoil tankers. They were capable of carrying an air group of 33 planes and were armed with an anti-aircraft battery of5 in (127 mm),40 mm (1.6 in), and20 mm (0.8 in) guns. The ships were capable of a top speed of 19knots (35 km/h; 22 mph), and due to their origin as tankers, had extensive fuel storage. She was delivered on 30 August 1946, but never commissioned. After spending 26 years in reserve, she was scrapped in 1973.
In 1941, as United States participation inWorld War II became increasingly likely, theUS Navy embarked on a construction program forescort carriers, which were converted fromtransport ships of various types. Many of the escort carrier types were converted fromC3-type transports, but theSangamon-class escort carriers were instead rebuiltoil tankers. These proved to be very successful ships, and theCommencement Bay class, authorized for Fiscal Year 1944, were an improved version of theSangamon design. The new ships were faster, had improved aviation facilities, and had better internalcompartmentation.[1] They proved to be the most successful of the escort carriers, and the only class to be retained in active service after the war, since they were large enough to operate newer aircraft.[2][3]
Rabaul was 557 ft 1 in (169.80 m)long overall, with abeam of 75 ft (23 m) at thewaterline, which extended to 105 ft 2 in (32.05 m) at maximum. Shedisplaced 21,397 long tons (21,740 t) atfull load, of which 12,876 long tons (13,083 t) could befuel oil (though some of her storage tanks were converted to permanently store seawater forballast), and at full load she had adraft of 27 ft 11 in (8.51 m). The ship'ssuperstructure consisted of a small island. She had a complement of 1,066 officers and enlisted men.[4]
The ship was powered by twoAllis-Chalmers gearedsteam turbines, each driving onescrew propeller, using steam provided by fourCombustion Engineering-manufacturedwater-tube boilers. The propulsion system was rated to produce a total of 16,000 shp (12,000 kW) for a top speed of 19knots (35 km/h; 22 mph). Given the very large storage capacity for oil, the ships of theCommencement Bay class could steam for some 23,900nautical miles (44,300 km; 27,500 mi) at a speed of 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).[4]
Her defensiveanti-aircraft armament consisted of two5 in (127 mm)dual-purpose guns in single mounts, thirty-six40 mm (2 in) Bofors guns, and twenty20 mm (1 in) Oerlikon light AA cannons. The Bofors guns were placed in three quadruple and twelve twin mounts, while the Oerlikon guns were all mounted individually. She carried 33 planes, which could be launched from twoaircraft catapults. Two elevators transferred aircraft from thehangar to theflight deck.[4]
The first fifteen ships of theCommencement Bay class were ordered on 23 January 1943, allocated to Fiscal Year 1944.[2] Thekeel forRabaul waslaid down at theTodd Pacific Shipyards inTacoma, Washington on 29 January 1945. She was named for the island ofRabaul inNew Georgia, a major Japanese base during World War II, which was neutralized during a lengthy campaign in 1943 and 1944. The ship waslaunched on 14 June, and was delivered to the US Navy on 30 August, shortly after the end of the war.[5][6]
The ship was notcommissioned, and was instead assigned to thePacific Reserve Fleet, based in Tacoma.[6] Ten of theCommencement Bay-class ships saw significant service postwar asanti-submarine warfare (ASW) carriers, but they were small and had difficulty operating the newGrumman AF Guardian patrol planes, so the rest of the class remainedlaid up, and they were soon replaced in the ASW role by much largerEssex-class aircraft carriers.[7] She was reclassified as a helicopter escort carrier, with thehull number CVHE-121, in June 1955. Three years later, in June 1958, she was moved to the San Diego Group of the Pacific Reserve Fleet.[6]
In May 1959,Rabaul was reclassified as an aircraft ferry, with the hull number AKV-121.[6] In the mid-1960s, the US Army explored the concept of a Floating Aircraft Maintenance Facility (FAMF), and in September 1967, theDepartment of Defense selectedRabaul to be converted for FAMF II, but the project ultimately came to nothing.[8] She remained part of the reserve fleet until she was struck from theNaval Vessel Register on 1 September 1971. The ship was eventually sold forscrap on 25 August 1972 to the Nicholai Joffe Corporation, based inBeverly Hills, California.[6] Shortly before scrapping, she was used in the closing scenes of the 1973 movieMagnum Force.[citation needed]
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.