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USS Card (CVE-11)
Encyclopedia
USS Card (AVG-11/ACV-11/CVE-11/CVHE-11/CVU-11/T-CVU-11/T-AKV-40) was a Bogue-class
Bogue class escort carrier
The Bogue-class were a group of escort carriers built in the United States for service with the U.S. Navy and the Royal Navy during World War II....
escort aircraft carrier
Escort aircraft carrier
The escort aircraft carrier or escort carrier, also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the USN or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft carrier used by the British Royal Navy , the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army Air Force, and the...
. Her hull was laid down on 27 October 1941 as a C-3 cargo ship but it was acquired from the Maritime Commission while under construction and was converted into an escort carrier.
She was launched as AVG 11 (hull 178) on 27 February 1942 by Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding, Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
, sponsored by Mrs. J. Perry. Reclassified ACV-11 on 20 August 1942 she was commissioned 8 November 1942 with Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
J. B. Sykes in command.
World War II
Departing San DiegoSan Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
18 January 1943, Card arrived at Hampton Roads 1 February for training in Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
. She ferried aircraft and troops for the North African invasion from New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
(14 May–1 June) returning to Norfolk
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
5 July. She was reclassified CVE-11 on 15 July 1943. Card steamed from Norfolk as flagship of TG 21.14, one of the hunter-killer groups formed for offensive operations against German submarines. Her first cruise from 27 July to 10 September 1943 was very successful. Her planes sank on 7 August in 39°32′N 38°21′W.; on 9 August in 40°12′N 37°29′W.; on 11 August in 41°29′N 38°55′W.; and on 27 August in 28°19′N 37°58′W.
Her second cruise from 25 September to 9 November provided even more lucrative hunting. Planes from Card spotted a nest of four submarines refueling 4 October and sank two of them: in 43°13′N 28°58′W., and in 43°18′N 28°58′W. Nine days later in 48°56′N 29°41′W., fell victim to aircraft from Card. Her aircraft added another submarine to their score on 31 October when they sank , in 49°14′N 31°55′W. The fifth and final kill of the cruise was made on 1 November by one of Cards escorts. After a violent, close-range surface action, rammed and sank in 50°12′N 30°48′W. Too badly damaged to be saved, Borie had to be sunk by one of the other escorts. For her outstanding antisubmarine activities from 27 July to 25 October, Card and her task group were awarded the Presidential Unit Citation.
Card began her third hunter-killer cruise 24 November heading for the North Atlantic. Late on 23 December the group ran into a wolf pack; Card had 12 contacts in 5 hours. sank in 45°20′N 21°40′W., but one of the other escorts, , was sunk by the combined efforts of three submarines in 45°00′N 22°00′W. Card dodged submarines all night with only as screen, while Schenck rescued survivors from Leary. The task group returned to Norfolk 2 January 1944.
From 18 March to 17 May Card operated on transport duty between Norfolk and Casablanca, then underwent overhaul until 4 June when she steamed for Quonset Point
Quonset Point
Quonset Point, also known simply as Quonset, is a small peninsula in Narragansett Bay in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. It is contained entirely within the town of North Kingstown. "Quonset" is a Native American word likely meaning "small long place".Quonset Point was the location of Naval Air...
to hold pilot qualification exercises. She returned to Norfolk 21 June to serve as the nucleus of TG 22.10. The hunter-killer unit departed Norfolk 25 June and on 5 July two of her escorts, and , sank in 42°16′N 59°49′W. Thirty survivors including the fatally wounded commanding officer of the submarine were taken on board Card who put them ashore at Boston the next day.
Her next antisubmarine cruise was in the Caribbean and uneventful (10 July–23 August). She sortied 18 September as flagship of TG 22.2 for patrol off the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
during which she cooperated with British Escort Group 9 to attack a submarine 12 October. After another patrol with TG 22.2 (1 December 1944 - 22 January 1945), Card entered Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
The Philadelphia Naval Business Center, formerly known as the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and Philadelphia Navy Yard, was the first naval shipyard of the United States. The U.S. Navy reduced its activities there in the 1990s, and ended most of them on September 30, 1995...
for overhaul until 7 February, then transported Army aircraft and Army and Navy personnel to Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, returning to Norfolk 12 March. From 21 March to 24 May, Card was based on Quonset Point, conducting carrier pilot qualifications. She ferried men and aircraft to Guantanamo Bay
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base is located on of land and water at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba which the United States leased for use as a coaling station following the Cuban-American Treaty of 1903. The base is located on the shore of Guantánamo Bay at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the oldest overseas...
(21 June-24 June), then transited the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
to transport materiel to Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
and Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, returning to San Diego 14 August 1945. Assigned to "Magic Carpet
Operation Magic Carpet (World War II)
Operation Magic Carpet was the post-World War II effort by the War Shipping Administration to repatriate over eight million American military personnel from the European, Pacific, and CBI theaters. Hundreds of Liberty ships, Victory ships, and troop transports began repatriating soldiers from...
" duty, she made two voyages to Pearl Harbor and one to the western Pacific from 21 August to 16 December 1945, returning servicemen to the west coast. Card departed Alameda
Alameda, California
Alameda is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located on Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, and is adjacent to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay. The Bay Farm Island portion of the city is adjacent to the Oakland International Airport. At the 2010 census, the city had a...
7 January 1946 for the east coast where she was placed out of commission in reserve at Norfolk 13 May 1946.
She was reclassified as a helicopter escort carrier CVHE-11, 12 June 1955; a utility carrier CVU-11, 1 July 1958; and an aviation transport AKV-40, 7 May 1959.
Awards
In addition to her Presidential Unit Citation, Card received three battle stars for service in World War II.Vietnam War
The ship was reactivated on 16 May 1958 as USNSUnited States Naval Ship
United States Naval Ship or USNS is the prefix designation given to non-commissioned ships that are property of the United States Navy.-Overview:...
Card and operated with a civilian crew under Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) control as an aircraft transport.
On 2 May 1964, while moored dockside in Saigon
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City , formerly named Saigon is the largest city in Vietnam...
, a North Vietnamese frogman
Frogman
A frogman is someone who is trained to scuba diving or swim underwater in a military capacity which can include combat. Such personnel are also known by the more formal names of combat diver or combatant diver or combat swimmer....
, Lam Son Nao, planted an explosive charge that blew a hole in the hull. Card settled in 20 feet (6.1 m) of water. She was patched and pumped out, and raised on 19 May, and towed to Subic Bay
U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay
U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay was a major ship-repair, supply, and rest and recreation facility of the United States Navy located in Zambales, Philippines. It was the largest U.S...
, and then Yokosuka
United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka
U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, or Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka is a United States Navy base, in Yokosuka, Japan. Its mission is to maintain and operate base facilities for the logistic, recreational, administrative support and service of the U.S. Naval Forces Japan, U.S. 7th Fleet and...
for repairs. Card returned to service on 11 December.
Eventually placed out of service on 10 March 1970, Card was stricken for disposal on 15 September and sold for scrap in 1971.