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USS Missoula (APA-211)
Encyclopedia
USS Missoula (APA-211) was a Haskell-class
attack transport
built and used by the US Navy
in World War II
. She was a Victory ship
design, VC2-S-AP5. She was named after Missoula County, Montana
, USA. She was the second ship to bear the name .
, 20 June 1944; launched 6 September 1944; sponsored by the Harmonettes, a female vocal group; acquired by the Navy 27 October 1944; and commissioned at Richmond, the same day, Commander
Alex. C. Kopper in command.
After shakedown along the California
coast, Missoula steamed from San Francisco to Pearl Harbor
6 to 12 December. She trained in Hawaii
an waters during the next 6 weeks; thence, with units of the 5th Marine Division embarked, she sailed 27 January for the scheduled invasion of Iwo Jima
. Among her troops she carried the dozen men who on two separate occasions raised the American flag atop Mount Suribachi
during bitter fighting 23 February. Assigned to Transport Squadron 16, she steamed via Eniwetok
to the staging area at Saipan
, where she completed final preparations for the invasion.
Missoula sortied with Rear Adm. Harry W. Hill
’s TF
53 on 16 February. She reached the transport area off Beach Green 1 before dawn 19 February, lowered her landing boats
, and at 0725 began debarking troops for the assault. As marines
stormed the beaches and began the struggle for Iwo Jima
, Missoula sent ashore troops and cargo from her position about 3,000 yards offshore. Late in the afternoon she departed the transport area for night cruising at sea; thence, she returned the following morning and resumed unloading operations. During the next 5 days she continued this pattern of operations.
While operating in the transport area 23 February, she received the following message at 1035: “American flag now flying on Mount Suribachi Yama.” Marines from the 28th Regiment
had raised the colors from the summit at 1020. That flag, the first of two which flew from Suribachi
that day, had come from Missoula. The adjutant of the 2d Battalion, 28th Marines
, had brought the small set of colors from the attack transport during the invasion.
In addition, Missoula provided medical facilities for casualties of the fierce fighting ashore. Her four surgical teams treated 100 stretcher and ambulatory cases, 59 of whom were brought on board during the first day. After embarking a final group of casualties, she sailed in convoy for Saipan 25 February. The following morning one of the convoy escorts, , detected, depth-charged, and sank Japanese submarine I‑370. Missoula arrived Saipan 28 February; and, after debarking the wounded marines, she sailed for the New Hebrides
with Transport Squadron 16 on 5 March.
Steaming via Tulagi
, Missoula reached Espiritu Santo
15 March and there embarked 1,177 Army
troops of the 27th Division. She departed with other transports the 25th, touched at Ulithi
3 April, and arrived off the western beaches of Okinawa 9 April. During the next 5 days she discharged men and supplies and embarked 143 casualties of the Okinawa campaign
; thence, between 14 and 18 April she steamed to Saipan.
For much of the next month Missoula operated out of Ulithi after which she headed for troop training exercises in the Philippines
. She arrived Subic Bay
, Luzon
, 31 May, and during the closing weeks of the war against Japan
, she took part in preparing Army troops for a possible amphibious invasion of Japan
. Following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
, the Japanese ended hostilities 15 August; thence, Missoula supported the movement of occupation troops into Japan.
As part of TF 33, Missoula departed Subic Bay 27 August. She entered Tokyo Bay
on the morning of 2 September and began debarking troops of the 1st Cavalry Division at 0951. Less than an hour before in another part of the bay, the Japanese Foreign Minister, Mamoru Shigemitsu, had signed the Instrument of Surrender
on board , thus officially ending World War II.
Missoula returned to the Philippines 4 to 11 September and embarked additional occupation troops at Zamboanga
and Mindanao
. Departing Leyte Gulf
22 September, she arrived Okinawa the 25th and on 3 October sailed for the Inland Sea. Between 6 and 11 October she debarked troops for the occupation of the rubble that was once Hiroshima
. She returned to Okinawa 13 October and joined in the mighty task of returning veterans (Operation Magic Carpet)
of the Pacific campaigns
to the United States
.
With 1,923 troops embarked, Missoula sailed the 17th and arrived San Francisco 1 November. She departed on a second “Magic Carpet” run 21 November and on 6 December embarked 2,060 soldiers at Okinawa. She steamed to Tacoma, Washington
, 8 to 21 December; thence, she returned to the western Pacific 21 January 1946 for further trooplift duty. She carried 692 men of the 2d Marine Air Wing
from Okinawa to Yokosuka early in February, embarked more than 2,000 veterans at Okinawa and Guam
later that month, and departed Guam for the west coast
the 22d. Missoula reached San Francisco 5 March, discharged her passengers, and completed her “Magic Carpet” duty.
Assigned to the 19th Fleet 9 April, Missoula operated in the San Francisco Bay
area during the next 5 months.
, 13 September 1946 and entered the Pacific Reserve Fleet at Mare Island
. Her name was struck from the Navy list
1 October 1958. She transferred to the Maritime Administration the same day and was assigned to the National Defense Reserve Fleet
. She was berthed in Suisun Bay, California on 29 October 1958. On 5 March 1977 she was sold to American Ship Dismantlers, Inc., for $218,001, to be scrapped. At 1115 PDT, on 8 March 1975 she was withdrawn from the Reserve Fleet and sent to the breaker's yard
.
Haskell class attack transport
Haskell-class attack transports were amphibious assault ships of the United States Navy created in 1944. They were designed to transport 1,500 troops and their combat equipment, and land them on hostile shores with the ships' integral landing craft....
attack transport
Attack transport
Attack Transport is a United States Navy ship classification.-History:In the early 1940s, as the United States Navy expanded in response to the threat of involvement in World War II, a number of civilian passenger ships and some freighters were acquired, converted to transports and given hull...
built and used by the US Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. She was a Victory ship
Victory ship
The Victory ship was a type of cargo ship produced in large numbers by North American shipyards during World War II to replace shipping losses caused by German submarines...
design, VC2-S-AP5. She was named after Missoula County, Montana
Missoula County, Montana
-National protected areas:*Bitterroot National Forest *Flathead National Forest *Lolo National Forest *Rattlesnake National Recreation Area-Demographics:...
, USA. She was the second ship to bear the name .
World War II service
Missoula was laid down under Maritime Commission contract by Permanente Metals Corp., Yard No. 2, Richmond, CaliforniaRichmond, California
Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was incorporated on August 7, 1905. It is located in the East Bay, part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It is a residential inner suburb of San Francisco, as well as the site of heavy industry, which has been...
, 20 June 1944; launched 6 September 1944; sponsored by the Harmonettes, a female vocal group; acquired by the Navy 27 October 1944; and commissioned at Richmond, the same day, Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
Alex. C. Kopper in command.
After shakedown along the California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
coast, Missoula steamed from San Francisco 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...
6 to 12 December. She trained in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
an waters during the next 6 weeks; thence, with units of the 5th Marine Division embarked, she sailed 27 January for the scheduled invasion of Iwo Jima
Battle of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima , or Operation Detachment, was a major battle in which the United States fought for and captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Empire of Japan. The U.S...
. Among her troops she carried the dozen men who on two separate occasions raised the American flag atop Mount Suribachi
Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima
Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima is a historic photograph taken on February 23, 1945, by Joe Rosenthal. It depicts five United States Marines and a U.S. Navy corpsman raising the flag of the United States atop Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.The photograph was extremely...
during bitter fighting 23 February. Assigned to Transport Squadron 16, she steamed via Eniwetok
Enewetak
Enewetak Atoll is a large coral atoll of 40 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ralik Chain of the Marshall Islands. Its land area totals less than , surrounding a deep central lagoon, in circumference...
to the staging area at Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
, where she completed final preparations for the invasion.
Missoula sortied with Rear Adm. Harry W. Hill
Harry W. Hill
Harry Wilbur Hill was an admiral in the United States Navy during World War II.-Biography:Hill was born in Oakland, California on 7 April 1890...
’s TF
Task force
A task force is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology...
53 on 16 February. She reached the transport area off Beach Green 1 before dawn 19 February, lowered her landing boats
Landing craft
Landing craft are boats and seagoing vessels used to convey a landing force from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. Most renowned are those used to storm the beaches of Normandy, the Mediterranean, and many Pacific islands during WWII...
, and at 0725 began debarking troops for the assault. As marines
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
stormed the beaches and began the struggle for Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
, Missoula sent ashore troops and cargo from her position about 3,000 yards offshore. Late in the afternoon she departed the transport area for night cruising at sea; thence, she returned the following morning and resumed unloading operations. During the next 5 days she continued this pattern of operations.
While operating in the transport area 23 February, she received the following message at 1035: “American flag now flying on Mount Suribachi Yama.” Marines from the 28th Regiment
28th Marine Regiment (United States)
The 28th Marine Regiment is an inactive infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps. They fought during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II and some of its members were immortalized in the famous photo of the flag raising on top of Mount Suribachi.-Subordinate units:The Regiment...
had raised the colors from the summit at 1020. That flag, the first of two which flew from Suribachi
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
that day, had come from Missoula. The adjutant of the 2d Battalion, 28th Marines
2nd Battalion 28th Marines
The 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines is an inactive infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. They were part of the 28th Marine Regiment and 5th Marine Division and fought during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II...
, had brought the small set of colors from the attack transport during the invasion.
In addition, Missoula provided medical facilities for casualties of the fierce fighting ashore. Her four surgical teams treated 100 stretcher and ambulatory cases, 59 of whom were brought on board during the first day. After embarking a final group of casualties, she sailed in convoy for Saipan 25 February. The following morning one of the convoy escorts, , detected, depth-charged, and sank Japanese submarine I‑370. Missoula arrived Saipan 28 February; and, after debarking the wounded marines, she sailed for the New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
with Transport Squadron 16 on 5 March.
Steaming via Tulagi
Tulagi
Tulagi, less commonly Tulaghi, is a small island in the Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Florida Island. The town of the same name on the island Tulagi, less commonly Tulaghi, is a small island (5.5 km by 1 km) in the Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Florida...
, Missoula reached Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of . It belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu....
15 March and there embarked 1,177 Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
troops of the 27th Division. She departed with other transports the 25th, touched at Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
3 April, and arrived off the western beaches of Okinawa 9 April. During the next 5 days she discharged men and supplies and embarked 143 casualties of the Okinawa campaign
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The 82-day-long battle lasted from early April until mid-June 1945...
; thence, between 14 and 18 April she steamed to Saipan.
For much of the next month Missoula operated out of Ulithi after which she headed for troop training exercises in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. She arrived Subic Bay
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...
, Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
, 31 May, and during the closing weeks of the war against Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, she took part in preparing Army troops for a possible amphibious invasion of Japan
Operation Downfall
Operation Downfall was the Allied plan for the invasion of Japan near the end of World War II. The operation was cancelled when Japan surrendered after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet Union's declaration of war against Japan. The operation had two parts: Operation...
. Following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
During the final stages of World War II in 1945, the United States conducted two atomic bombings against the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, the first on August 6, 1945, and the second on August 9, 1945. These two events are the only use of nuclear weapons in war to date.For six months...
, the Japanese ended hostilities 15 August; thence, Missoula supported the movement of occupation troops into Japan.
As part of TF 33, Missoula departed Subic Bay 27 August. She entered Tokyo Bay
Tokyo Bay
is a bay in the southern Kantō region of Japan. Its old name was .-Geography:Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Bōsō Peninsula to the east and the Miura Peninsula to the west. In a narrow sense, Tokyo Bay is the area north of the straight line formed by the on the Miura Peninsula on one end and on...
on the morning of 2 September and began debarking troops of the 1st Cavalry Division at 0951. Less than an hour before in another part of the bay, the Japanese Foreign Minister, Mamoru Shigemitsu, had signed the Instrument of Surrender
Japanese Instrument of Surrender
The Japanese Instrument of Surrender was the written agreement that enabled the Surrender of Japan, marking the end of World War II. It was signed by representatives from the Empire of Japan, the United States of America, the Republic of China, the United Kingdom, the Union of Soviet Socialist...
on board , thus officially ending World War II.
Missoula returned to the Philippines 4 to 11 September and embarked additional occupation troops at Zamboanga
Zamboanga City
The City of Zamboanga : is a highly urbanized, independent and a chartered city located in Mindanao, Philippines....
and Mindanao
Mindanao
Mindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
. Departing Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf is a body of water immediately east of the island of Leyte in the Philippines, adjoining the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, at . The Gulf is bounded on the north by the island of Samar, which is separated from Leyte on the west by the narrow San Juanico Strait, and on the south by...
22 September, she arrived Okinawa the 25th and on 3 October sailed for the Inland Sea. Between 6 and 11 October she debarked troops for the occupation of the rubble that was once Hiroshima
Hiroshima
is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chūgoku region of western Honshu, the largest island of Japan. It became best known as the first city in history to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon when the United States Army Air Forces dropped an atomic bomb on it at 8:15 A.M...
. She returned to Okinawa 13 October and joined in the mighty task of returning veterans (Operation 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...
of the Pacific campaigns
Pacific Theater of Operations
The Pacific Theater of Operations was the World War II area of military activity in the Pacific Ocean and the countries bordering it, a geographic scope that reflected the operational and administrative command structures of the American forces during that period...
to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
With 1,923 troops embarked, Missoula sailed the 17th and arrived San Francisco 1 November. She departed on a second “Magic Carpet” run 21 November and on 6 December embarked 2,060 soldiers at Okinawa. She steamed to 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...
, 8 to 21 December; thence, she returned to the western Pacific 21 January 1946 for further trooplift duty. She carried 692 men of the 2d Marine Air Wing
2nd Marine Aircraft Wing
The 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing is the major east coast aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps and is based at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina...
from Okinawa to Yokosuka early in February, embarked more than 2,000 veterans at Okinawa 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...
later that month, and departed Guam for the west coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
the 22d. Missoula reached San Francisco 5 March, discharged her passengers, and completed her “Magic Carpet” duty.
Assigned to the 19th Fleet 9 April, Missoula operated in the San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
area during the next 5 months.
Fate
She decommissioned at Port Chicago, CaliforniaPort Chicago, California
Port Chicago was a town on the southern banks of Suisun Bay, in Contra Costa County, California. It was located east-northeast of Martinez, at an elevation of 13 feet...
, 13 September 1946 and entered the Pacific Reserve Fleet at Mare Island
Mare Island
Mare Island is a peninsula in the United States alongside the city of Vallejo, California, about northeast of San Francisco. The Napa River forms its eastern side as it enters the Carquinez Strait juncture with the east side of San Pablo Bay. Mare Island is considered a peninsula because no full...
. Her name was struck from the Navy list
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
1 October 1958. She transferred to the Maritime Administration the same day and was assigned to the National Defense Reserve Fleet
National Defense Reserve Fleet
The National Defense Reserve Fleet consists of "mothballed" ships, mostly merchant vessels, that can be activated within 20 to 120 days to provide shipping for the United States of America during national emergencies, either military or non-military, such as commercial shipping crises.The NDRF is...
. She was berthed in Suisun Bay, California on 29 October 1958. On 5 March 1977 she was sold to American Ship Dismantlers, Inc., for $218,001, to be scrapped. At 1115 PDT, on 8 March 1975 she was withdrawn from the Reserve Fleet and sent to the breaker's yard
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
.