USS Croatan (CVE-25)
Encyclopedia
USS Croatan (CVE-25) (previously AVG-25 then ACV-25) was an escort carrier launched on 1 August 1942 by the Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation
Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation
The Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation was a United States corporation which built ships for the US Navy and merchant marine during World War II ....

 of Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...

, under a Maritime Commission contract; sponsored by Mrs. J. S. Russell; and commissioned on 28 April 1943, 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. Lyon in command.

Service history

Sailing from San Diego, California
San 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...

 on 2 July 1943, Croatan arrived at Norfolk, Virginia
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....

 on 19 July. As the nucleus for a hunter-killer group, she sailed on 5 August for antisubmarine
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....

 operations in the Atlantic covering the movement of convoys. Her planes had two skirmishes with surfaced submarines, and on 5 September initiated night flying operations from escort carriers. She returned to Norfolk on 22 September.

From 17 October-29 December 1943, Croatan made two voyages 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...

 ferrying aircraft and plane crews for the North African operations. After another antisubmarine patrol from 14 January-27 February 1944, she took part in tests with the Naval Research Laboratory at Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...

. From 24 March-11 May, Croatan made a most successful patrol. On 7 April, her planes marked out , which was sunk by her escorts and at 40°18′N 62°22′W. On the night of 25–26 April, her four escorts joined in sinking at 17°54′N 38°05′W. She was also successful in her patrol from 2 June-22 July. On 10 June, Croatans planes and escorts , Huse, and attacked and remained in constant contact with it, forcing it to surface the next day. Sixty survivors, including the commanding officer, were rescued before the submarine sank from scuttling charges at 42°47′N 40°08′W. Aircraft and escorts Frost and Inch combined again to sink on 3 July, at 34°00′N 19°30′W.
Following a brief overhaul and radar tests with the Naval Research Laboratory, Croatan put to sea again on 20 August 1944. On 15 September, she aided survivors from who had foundered in a hurricane. Returning to Norfolk on 1 October, Croatan next sailed for antisubmarine training at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
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...

 and Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...

, then proceeded to provide air cover for a high-speed east bound task force, returning to New York on 4 February 1945. For the next month, she qualified pilots in carrier operations, then sailed from Norfolk on 25 March to join a barrier line to intercept German submarines as part of Operation Teardrop
Operation Teardrop
Operation Teardrop was a United States Navy operation of World War II conducted during April and May 1945 to sink German U-boats that were believed to be approaching the United States east coast armed with V-1 flying bombs. Two large U.S. Navy anti-submarine warfare task forces succeeded in...

. On 16 April, her escorts, Frost and sank and at 47°53′N 30°26′W. Croatan returned by way of Naval Station Argentia
Naval Station Argentia
Naval Station Argentia is a former base of the United States Navy that operated from 1941-1994. It was established in the community of Argentia in what was then the Dominion of Newfoundland, which later became the tenth Canadian province .-Construction:Established under the British-U.S...

, Newfoundland
Dominion of Newfoundland
The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British Dominion from 1907 to 1949 . The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...

 to New York City
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...

 on 14 May for overhaul.

From 15 September-3 November, Croatan qualified aviators at 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...

, then cleared Norfolk on 23 November on the first of two transatlantic voyages to bring troops home from Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. Croatan was placed out of commission in reserve at Norfolk on 20 May 1946. Reactivated, Croatan was assigned to MSTS in a noncommissioned status, manned by a civilian crew on 16 June 1958. In August 1963, she carried 23 F-104 Starfighter
F-104 Starfighter
The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is a single-engine, high-performance, supersonic interceptor aircraft originally developed for the United States Air Force by Lockheed. One of the Century Series of aircraft, it served with the USAF from 1958 until 1969, and continued with Air National Guard units...

s delivered to the Royal Norwegian Air Force
Royal Norwegian Air Force
The Royal Norwegian Air Force is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian armed forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peace force is approximately 1,430 employees . 600 personnel also serve their draft period in the RNoAF...

 331 Squadron
No. 331 Squadron RAF
In honour of the achievements of the World War II squadrons, the RNoAF has maintained RAF squadron names, including a 331st Fighter Squadron, now flying F-16s and based at Bodø Main Air Station.-Aircraft operated during RAF service:*1941 Hawker Hurricane I & IIB...

 at Bodø
Bodø
is a city and a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Salten region.The city of Bodø was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Bodin was merged with Bodø on 1 January 1968. Skjerstad was merged with Bodø on 1 January 2005...

, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. In October 1964, she served as an experimental ship under NASA control until May 1965. In August 1965, she helped transport helicopters for the US Army's 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) to Vietnam. She was stricken for disposal on 15 September 1970 and sold for scrap in 1971.
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