%2c_circa_in_1945.jpg) USSRandall (APA-224), circa in 1945 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | Randall |
| Namesake | Randall County, Texas |
| Ordered | as aType VC2-S-AP5 hull,MCE hull 572[1] |
| Builder | Permanente Metals Corporation,Richmond, California |
| Yard number | 572[1] |
| Laid down | 15 September 1944 |
| Launched | 15 November 1944 |
| Sponsored by | Mrs. Donald D. Dick |
| Commissioned | 12 December 1944 |
| Decommissioned | 6 April 1956 |
| Stricken | 1 July 1960 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate |
|
| General characteristics[2] | |
| Class & type | Haskell-classattack transport |
| Type | Type VC2-S-AP5 |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 455 ft (139 m) |
| Beam | 62 ft (19 m) |
| Draft | 24 ft (7.3 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion | |
| Speed | 17.7 kn (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) |
| Boats & landing craft carried |
|
| Capacity |
|
| Troops | 87 officers, 1,475 enlisted |
| Complement | 56 officers, 480 enlisted |
| Armament |
|
| Service record | |
| Part of | TransRon 23 |
| Awards | |
USSRandall (APA-224) was aHaskell-classattack transport in service with theUnited States Navy from 1944 to 1956. She was sold for scrap in 1972.
Randall was of the VC2-S-AP5Victory ship design type and named afterRandall County, Texas. She was laid down 15 September 1944, under aMaritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCV Hull 572, byPermanente Metals Corporation, Yard No. 2,Richmond, California; launched 15 November 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Donald D. Dick; and acquired by the Navy and commissioned 16 December 1944.[3]
Followingshakedown and training off the California coast,Randall left forPearl Harbor on 9 February 1945, fromSan Diego. She then sailed to theVolcano Islands, viaEniwetok. She arrived atIwo Jima on 25 March, unloadedUS Army personnel and supplies, and embarkedMarines for transportation toGuam. The ship returned to Pearl Harbor 20 April, where she loaded drummed petroleum products forKwajalein and took on Navy and Marine personnel for return to the US. Arriving inSan Francisco on 18 June, she proceeded toUlithi 9 July, embarking Army units, and then continued toOkinawa, arriving 12 August.[3]
ComedianSoupy Sales served onRandall during the war and entertained his shipmates with zany vignettes featuring White Fang, the meanest dog that ever lived.[4]
With the end of World War II,Randall was assigned to occupation duty and on 5 September, got underway forKorea with units of the7th Army Division. Returning to Okinawa, she carried Marines toTaku, 26–30 September, then, after a run to thePhilippines, sailed again for theChina coast. Between 22 October and 23 November, she ferried Chinese troops fromKowloon toChinwangtao andQingdao and on 29 November, departed theFar East on her first"Magic Carpet" run carryingUS Army Air Corps units from Okinawa toSeattle.[3]
Detached from "Magic Carpet" duty in August 1946,Randall was employed in theUS Pacific Fleet'samphibious training program from September until December, when she returned to theeast coast, underwent overhaul, and was briefly immobilized atNew York. She then steamed toNorfolk, Virginia, arriving 24 April 1947. Assigned again to amphibious training duties, she operated along the southeastern seaboard until August 1948, when she steamed north for operations off easternCanada. In September she resumed exercises off the Virginia andCarolina coasts.[3]
In February 1949, she again departed the eastern seaboard this time forCaribbean operations, and during the fall steamed back into the Pacific for exercises as far west as Hawaii, returning to Norfolk and resuming training operations withNaval Reservists and Marines, 1 December.[3]
From 1952, until her decommissioning, the ship sailed fromHampton Roads andNaval Amphibious Base Little Creek often berthing at NOB Pier 2. Between 1952 and 1955, she made numerous trips to theCaribbean for training purposes and a six-month training cruise to theMediterranean. She had a total of three Captains – Nicholas Frank, Henry Sturr and Christopher Brackstone, all Naval Academy graduates. In 1954, she received the "E" award for her class.[citation needed] In 1955,Randall was used in the filming ofAway All Boats as the fictitious USSBelinda, with filming primarily aroundSaint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, andVieques Island, Puerto Rico.[5][6]
At the end of 1955,Randall was ordered inactivated and on 25 January 1956, she arrived atOrange, Texas, to join theAtlantic Reserve Fleet. Decommissioned 6 April 1956, she remained in reserve at Orange until transferred to theMaritime Administration's (MARAD)National Defense Reserve Fleet,Mobile Group, in February 1960. Her name was struck from theNavy list 1 July 1960.[3]
On 28 October 1971,Randall was sold toUnion Minerals & Alloys Corporation, along with eight other ships, for $467,100, with the condition that they would be scrapped. On 17 January 1972, she was officially withdrawn from the Reserve Fleet.[7]
Online resources
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.
