_in_San_Francisco_Bay%2c_California_(USA)%2c_circa_in_late_1945_(NH_98742).jpg) USSPondera (APA-191) inSan Francisco Bay, bringing troops home inOperation Magic Carpet, late 1945 or early '46 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSPondera |
| Namesake | Pondera County, Montana |
| Ordered |
|
| Laid down | 28 April 1944 |
| Launched | 27 July 1944 |
| Commissioned | 24 September 1944 |
| Decommissioned | 6 April 1946 |
| Stricken | 19 June 1946 |
| Fate | Scrapped, 1974 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement | 14,833 (full load) |
| Length | 455 ft 0 in (138.68 m) |
| Beam | 62 ft 0 in (18.90 m) |
| Draught | 28 ft 1 in (8.56 m) |
| Speed | 17 knots |
| Capacity | 150,000 cu. ft, 2,900 tons |
| Complement | 56 Officers 480 Enlisted |
| Armament |
|
USSPondera (APA-191) was aHaskell-classattack transport acquired by theU.S. Navy duringWorld War II for the task of transporting troops to and from combat areas.
Pondera (APA–191), built underUnited States Maritime Commission contact (MCV hull 659), was laid down by theKaiser Shipbuilding Co.,Vancouver, Washington, 28 April 1944; launched 27 July 1944; sponsored by Miss Elinor C. Gottlieb; delivered to the Navy and commissioned 24 September 1944.
Followingshakedown,Pondera remained inCalifornia waters, training pre-commissioning crews for APAs, until 23 January 1945. Two weeks of amphibious training followed and in February she departedSan Francisco, California, forHawaii. After further amphibious training she carried the81st Construction Battalion toOkinawa, anchoring offHagushi 26 April. Later shifting toNakagusuku Wan, she disembarked troops there 3–4 May and during the night assistedUSS Carina (AK-74), damaged by a suicide boat. On the 8th she departed, with casualties embarked, forSaipan, whence she sailed to San Francisco, California.
She completed a second troop lift to theFar East,Leyte, in July, and was en route on her thirdtranspacific run when the war ended. Arriving atUlithi 25 August, she sailed toGuam, disembarked half of her troops there, then continued on toOkinawa to discharge the remainder. In mid-September she took on men of theXXIV Corps and on the 24th debarked them atJinsen,Korea. In October she carried further elements of that Corps toKorea, then, after replenishing atManila, joinedTransRon 17, 8 November, atHong Kong, to lift troops of the 8th Chinese Nationalist Army toQingdao. Completing that mission 16 November,Pondera reported forOperation Magic Carpet duty and on 20 November arrived atSan Diego, California, with units of the5th Marine Division. She completed her second and last "Magic Carpet" run at San Francisco 9 March 1946 and ten days later got underway for theU.S. East Coast and inactivation.
Arriving atNorfolk, Virginia, 6 April, she decommissioned and was transferred to theUnited States Maritime Commission 6 June 1946. Struck from theNavy List 19 June 1946, she was laid up in theJames River, Virginia, berthing area,National Defense Reserve Fleet, where she remained into 1974 when she was sold for scrapping.
Pondera earned onebattle star duringWorld War II.
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
