.jpg) USSLST-613 in May 1945 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | LST-613 |
| Builder | Chicago Bridge and Iron Company,Seneca |
| Laid down | 21 January 1944 |
| Launched | 2 May 1944 |
| Commissioned | 19 May 1944 |
| Decommissioned | 6 January 1946 |
| In service | 31 March 1952 |
| Out of service | Late 1960s |
| Renamed | T-LST-613 |
| Stricken | 30 June 1975 |
| Fate | Sold toRepublic of Singapore Navy, 1 June 1976 |
 Singapore | |
| Name | Persistence |
| Namesake | Persistence |
| Acquired | 1 June 1976 |
| Commissioned | 1 July 1971 (on loan) |
| Decommissioned | 1999 |
| Homeport | Changi Naval Base,Singapore |
| Identification | L-205 |
| Fate | Serving as a floating sea-defense barricade atChangi Naval Base |
| Status | Decommissioned |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | LST-542-classtank landing ship |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 328 ft (100 m) |
| Beam | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Draft |
|
| Propulsion | 2 ×General Motors12-567diesel engines, two shafts, twin rudders |
| Speed | 12knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Boats & landing craft carried | 2 ×LCVPs |
| Troops | 16 officers, 147 enlisted men |
| Complement | 7 officers, 104 enlisted men |
| Armament |
|
| Aviation facilities | Deck ashelipad |
USSLST-613 originally was aUnited States NavyLST-542-classtank landing ship built duringWorld War II and in commission from 1944 to 1946, and again in the late 1952. In 1976, she was sold to theRepublic of Singapore Navy and renamedRSSPersistence (L-205).
LST-613 was laid down on 21 January 1944, atSeneca, Illinois, by theChicago Bridge and Iron Company. She waslaunched on 2 May 1944, andcommissioned on 19 May 1944.[1][2]
DuringWorld War II,LST-613 was assigned to theAsiatic-Pacific Campaign and participated inMorotai landings, the invasion ofIndonesia on 15 September 1944.Leyte landings, 19 to 29 November 1944.Mindoro landings, 12 to 18 December 1944, in thePhilippines andLingayen Gulf landings, 6 to 17 January 1945.Visayan Island landing, 18 March 1945, andTarakan Island operation, 27 April to 5 May 1945. At the close of World War II,LST-613 remained in active service in Amphibious Force,United States Navy on theFar East.LST-613 was decommissioned on 6 January 1946, assigned forCommander Naval Forces Far East (COMNAVFE)Shipping Control Authority for Japan (SCAJAP) and redesignated asQ038.[1][2]
LST-613 was transferred to theMilitary Sea Transportation Service (MSTS), 31 March 1952, and redesignated asUSNST-LST-613.[1]
T-LST-613 made a trip toVietnam, during theVietnam War, carrying cargos. She beached at theDa Nang Bridge Ramp, circa February 1969.[citation needed]
T-LST-613 was on loan since 1 July 1971, but finally sold toSingapore on 1 June 1976, and was renamed asRSSPersistence (L-205).[2]Persistence, along with four other ex-US Navy LSTs sold to Singapore by the US at around the same period of time, served as part of the RSN's 191 Squadron of the 3rd Flotilla, with its main roles being transporting Singapore Army troops and personnel to training facilities abroad (in foreign countries such as Taiwan), rescue-and-aid operations, supply missions as well as for officer-cadet training programmes conducted overseas.
All four ex-US Navy LSTs are employed as floating sea-defense barricades forChangi Naval Base.[3]
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