.jpg) USSWahkiakum County (LST-1162) | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSWahkiakum County |
| Namesake | Wahkiakum County inWashington |
| Builder | Ingalls Shipbuilding Corporation,Pascagoula,Mississippi |
| Laid down | 21 July 1952 |
| Launched | 23 January 1953 |
| Commissioned | 13 August 1953 |
| Decommissioned | 16 October 1970 |
| In service | withMilitary Sealift Command in non-commissioned service from 10 April 1972 to 11 January 1973 or 11 November 1973[1] |
| Renamed |
|
| Reclassified | T-LST-1162 10 April 1972 |
| Stricken | 11 January 1973[2] or 11 November 1973[3] |
| Fate |
|
| Notes | In commissioned service as USSLST-1162 1953-1955 and as USSWahkiakum County (LST-1162) 1955-1970; in non-commissioned service withMilitary Sealift Command as USNSWahkiakum County (T-LST-1162) 1972-1973 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | LST-1156-(Terrebonne Parish-) classlanding ship tank |
| Displacement | 2,590 tons (light); 5,800 tons (full) |
| Length | 384 ft (117 m) |
| Beam | 55 ft (17 m) |
| Draft | 17 ft (5.2 m) |
| Installed power | 6,000shp (4.48 MW) |
| Propulsion | FourGeneral Motors 16-278Adiesel engines, two controllable-pitchpropellers |
| Speed | 14knots |
| Boats & landing craft carried | 3 x landing craft, vehicle, personnelLCVPs, 1 x landing craft personnel (large)LCPL |
| Troops | 395 (15officers, 380 enlisted men) |
| Complement | 205 (16 officers, 189 enlisted men) |
| Armor |
|
USSWahkiakum County (LST-1162), previouslyUSSLST-1162, was aUnited States Navylanding ship tank (LST) in commission from 1953 to 1970, and which then saw non-commissioned Military Sealift Command service asUSNSWahkiakum County (T-LST-1162) from 1972 to 1973.
Wahkiakum County was laid down as USSLST-1162 on 21 July 1952 atPascagoula,Mississippi by theIngalls Shipbuilding Corporation. She was launched on 23 January 1953, sponsored by Mrs. Wilbur G. Dees, andcommissioned on 13 August 1953.
Following shakedown inGuantanamo Bay,Cuba,LST-1162 operated out of theUnited States Atlantic Fleet'sNaval Amphibious Base Little Creek,Virginia Beach,Virginia, for the remainder of 1953, conducting local operations out of Little Creek and off the coast ofFlorida. In 1954,LST-1162 participated in Atlantic Fleet amphibious maneuvers "NprAmEx" and "LantFlex" and conducted operations with the Operational Development Force out ofKey West, Florida, testingantisubmarine warfare gear. Later during 1954,LST-1162 visitedHavana, Cuba, with embarkednaval reservists. During March 1955,LST-1162 operated offBloodsworth Island, conducting gunfire tests and serving as range safety vessel at the Navy's gunnery practice areas there.
On 1 July 1955, USSLST-1162 was named USSWahkiakum County (LST-1162). For the next five years,Wahkiakum County pursued a regular schedule of operations off theUnited States East Coast and into theCaribbean andGulf of Mexico.[2] She was deployed in the Mediterranean Sea in 1958 and 1959, both from January through June.[citation needed] Operating with the Atlantic Fleet's amphibious force, she served alternatively as ahelicopter carrier -— a harbinger of the roles which other ships of her type would perform during theVietnam War; a shore bombardment safety vessel; an afloat gunnery training ship; and atransport for Navy construction battalions (CB's or "Seabees") and their equipment.[2]
At the end of this period, she deployed to theMediterranean Sea and operated with the6th Fleet from May to December 1960. She carried cargo and troops and participated in amphibious exercises with naval units ofNorth Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries in the Mediterranean.
Wahkiakum County underwent a majoroverhaul atNewport News, Virginia, in 1961, before she resumed active operations with a three-month Caribbean deployment.
Transferred to Amphibious Squadron (PhibRon) 12 on 1 July 1961,Wahkiakum County participated in several amphibious landing exercises and contingency operations over the remainder of the year. During July and September 1961, she transportedUnited States Naval Academymidshipmen fromAnnapolis, Maryland, to Little Creek, Virginia, for annual summer training and began a three-month Caribbean deployment in September 1961.
During theCuban Missile Crisis in the autumn of 1962,Wahkiakum County embarked the 2nd Battalion,8th Marine Regiment, and operated in support of theblockade of Cuba from 24 October 1962 to 7 December 1962. She deployed to the Mediterranean in the spring of 1963, operating with the 6th Fleet Amphibious Task Force, and again to the Caribbean during the spring of 1964.
On 24 April 1965, supporters of the oustedDominican Republic PresidentJuan Bosch launched acoup d'etat inSanto Domingo, which soon degenerated into a civil war, with loyalists battling a rebel group backed by armed civilians. As the fighting threatened Americans there, theUnited States sentU.S. Marines to protect and evacuate Americans. When it appeared that the revolt had been taken over byFidel Castro's Cubans, the United States intervened with more men —-paratroops of the82nd Airborne Division and Marines. During the period from 9 May 1965 to 17 May 1965,Wahkiakum County operated in support of this evacuation and intervention operation.
For the remainder of the 1960s and into 1970,Wahkiakum County operated on regular deployments to the Caribbean and Mediterranean.
Decommissioned at the Inactive Ship Facility,Orange,Texas, on 16 October 1970,Wahkiakum County was transferred to theMilitary Sealift Command (MSC) atBrooklyn, New York on 10 April 1972. Reclassified as aUnited States Naval Ship (USNS) -- indicating non-commissioned U.S. Navy service with a largely civilian crew—and as T-LST-1162, the now-USNSWahkiakum County operated with MSC as acargo ship until struck from theNavy List in 1973; sources disagree on the date on which she was struck, claiming it was either on 11 January 1973[2] or on 11 November 1973.[3] She was then laid up.
Wahkiakum County was transferred to theMaritime Administration on 29 July 1992, for lay up in theNational Defense Reserve Fleet,Suisun Bay,Benicia, California.[2][4] She was sold for scrapping on 22 June 2005 toESCO Marine,Brownsville, Texas, and removed from the Suisun Bay National Defense Reserve Fleet on 24 August 2005. She was subsequently scrapped.
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entries can be foundhere andhere.
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