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USS Shasta (AE-6)
Encyclopedia
USS Shasta (AE-6), an ammunition ship, was laid down under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 125) on 12 August 1940 by the Tampa Shipbuilding Company
, Tampa, Fla., initially as a C2 type cargo ship. She was acquired by the Navy on 16 April 1941 and launched on 9 July 1941, sponsored by Mrs. Spessard L. Holland. She was commissioned on 20 January 1942 with Capt. Francis A. Smith in command. She was named after Mount Shasta
, a volcano in the Cascade Range
in northern California
, USA.
On 19 November 1942, Shasta departed Alameda, Calif., for Noumea
, New Caledonia
, on the first of her ten wartime transpacific voyages. At the western end of each voyage, she moved from island to island replenishing the ammunition supplies of the Battle Fleet. With one exception, a deployment to Adak
, Alaska
, in support of the Attu
and Kiska
operations, Shasta's activities centered around the campaigns in the western Pacific. Her cargo supported the campaigns against the Gilberts, the Marianas, the Palaus, and the Philippines
.
The highlights of Shasta's wartime career came in 1945. In February, she participated in the first successful underway replenishment
of ammunition. Later, while re-supplying the warships supporting the assault on Iwo Jima
, she came under the fire of Japanese shore batteries. Her most harrowing experience occurred on 5 June when she was battered by the force fourteen winds of a typhoon off the southeastern coast of Okinawa. Though her cargo had shifted and much of it had been damaged, Shasta still managed a successful rearming rendezvous before sailing for Leyte Gulf
in the Philippines.
Her cargo operations complete, Shasta departed Leyte Gulf and joined TG 30.8 on 17 July 1945. After a short replenishment cruise, she returned to Leyte Gulf for more cargo. The end of the war found Shasta taking on cargo from Victory ship
s. She remained at Leyte Gulf until 25 October, at which time she sailed for Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
via Eniwetok Atoll. Following inactivation overhaul, she was decommissioned at San Diego on 10 August 1946.
After almost six years of inactivity in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Shasta was recommissioned on 15 July 1953. Under the command of Capt. Peter M. Gaviglio, she departed San Diego on 26 November 1953 and joined the Atlantic Service Fleet at Norfolk on 12 November. At the completion of modernization overhaul at Norfolk and underway replenishment training off Newport, R.I., Shasta sailed on 7 January for her first Mediterranean deployment. For the next eleven years, she alternated between cruises with the 6th Fleet and Atlantic seaboard operations. She provided ammunition supply support to the 6th Fleet during the Jordanian crisis of May 1957 and the Lebanese crisis of August 1958.
During her assignments to the continental United States
, Shasta participated in several special projects. She acted as a target ship for nuclear submarines, tested instruments on a dummy Polaris missile attached to her keel, and took part in NATO exercises. In June 1959, Shasta helped test a recently developed torpedo counter-measure known as Project “Phoenix”.
On 14 September 1966, Shasta steamed out of Norfolk on a final visit to the Far East. She transited the Panama Canal
on 20 September, called briefly at Pearl Harbor, and arrived at Subic Bay
in the Philippines on 26 October. She remained in the Far East, either at Subic Bay or on Yankee Station
, until 22 April 1967. On that day, she started her return voyage to Norfolk. Arriving at Norfolk on 8 June, Shasta completed her only circumnavigation of the globe. During this voyage, she transited the Suez Canal
and stopped at Valleta, Malta
; and Barcelona
, Spain
.
Following overhaul, Shasta weighed anchor for what was to be her final deployment. En route to Rota, Spain
, and assignment with the 6th Fleet, she was diverted to assist in the unsuccessful search for nuclear submarine, USS Scorpion (SSN-589)
, which was lost with all hands off the Azores
. Main engine difficulties caused Shasta to cut short her projected six-month deployment and return to Norfolk for major repairs. She was placed in a reduced operating status until 1 July 1969, when her name was struck from the Navy list. On 24 March 1970, Shasta was sold to Mr. Isaac Valera of Madrid
for scrapping by the Spanish company, Revalorizacionde Materials, S.A.
and one for Vietnam service.
Tampa Shipbuilding Company
Tampa Shipbuilding Company, or TASCO, was a shipyard in Tampa, Florida. Started in 1917, it had three shipways in the years before World War II. It grew larger because of its involvement in the United States Maritime Commission's pre-war long-range shipbuilding program. During the war it...
, Tampa, Fla., initially as a C2 type cargo ship. She was acquired by the Navy on 16 April 1941 and launched on 9 July 1941, sponsored by Mrs. Spessard L. Holland. She was commissioned on 20 January 1942 with Capt. Francis A. Smith in command. She was named after Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta is located at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California and at is the second highest peak in the Cascades and the fifth highest in California...
, a volcano in the Cascade Range
Cascade Range
The Cascade Range is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, and the notable volcanoes known as the High Cascades...
in northern 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...
, USA.
On 19 November 1942, Shasta departed Alameda, Calif., for Noumea
Nouméa
Nouméa is the capital city of the French territory of New Caledonia. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and is home to the majority of the island's European, Polynesian , Indonesian, and Vietnamese populations, as well as many Melanesians,...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, on the first of her ten wartime transpacific voyages. At the western end of each voyage, she moved from island to island replenishing the ammunition supplies of the Battle Fleet. With one exception, a deployment to Adak
Adak Island
Adak Island is an island near the western extent of the Andreanof Islands group of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Alaska's southernmost town, Adak, is located on the island...
, Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, in support of the Attu
Attu Island
Attu is the westernmost and largest island in the Near Islands group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, making it the westernmost point of land relative to Alaska and the United States. It was the site of the only World War II land battle fought on the incorporated territory of the United States ,...
and Kiska
Kiska
Kiska is an island in the Rat Islands group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska located at . It is about long and varies in width from - Discovery :...
operations, Shasta's activities centered around the campaigns in the western Pacific. Her cargo supported the campaigns against the Gilberts, the Marianas, the Palaus, and 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...
.
The highlights of Shasta's wartime career came in 1945. In February, she participated in the first successful underway replenishment
Underway replenishment
Underway replenishment or replenishment at sea is a method of transferring fuel, munitions, and stores from one ship to another while under way.-History:...
of ammunition. Later, while re-supplying the warships supporting the assault on 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...
, she came under the fire of Japanese shore batteries. Her most harrowing experience occurred on 5 June when she was battered by the force fourteen winds of a typhoon off the southeastern coast of Okinawa. Though her cargo had shifted and much of it had been damaged, Shasta still managed a successful rearming rendezvous before sailing for 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...
in the Philippines.
Her cargo operations complete, Shasta departed Leyte Gulf and joined TG 30.8 on 17 July 1945. After a short replenishment cruise, she returned to Leyte Gulf for more cargo. The end of the war found Shasta taking on cargo from 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...
s. She remained at Leyte Gulf until 25 October, at which time she sailed for Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington...
via Eniwetok Atoll. Following inactivation overhaul, she was decommissioned at San Diego on 10 August 1946.
After almost six years of inactivity in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Shasta was recommissioned on 15 July 1953. Under the command of Capt. Peter M. Gaviglio, she departed San Diego on 26 November 1953 and joined the Atlantic Service Fleet at Norfolk on 12 November. At the completion of modernization overhaul at Norfolk and underway replenishment training off Newport, R.I., Shasta sailed on 7 January for her first Mediterranean deployment. For the next eleven years, she alternated between cruises with the 6th Fleet and Atlantic seaboard operations. She provided ammunition supply support to the 6th Fleet during the Jordanian crisis of May 1957 and the Lebanese crisis of August 1958.
During her assignments to the continental United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Shasta participated in several special projects. She acted as a target ship for nuclear submarines, tested instruments on a dummy Polaris missile attached to her keel, and took part in NATO exercises. In June 1959, Shasta helped test a recently developed torpedo counter-measure known as Project “Phoenix”.
On 14 September 1966, Shasta steamed out of Norfolk on a final visit to the Far East. She 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...
on 20 September, called briefly at Pearl Harbor, and arrived at 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...
in the Philippines on 26 October. She remained in the Far East, either at Subic Bay or on Yankee Station
Yankee Station
Yankee Station was a point in the Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of Vietnam used by the U.S. Navy aircraft carriers of Task Force 77 to launch strikes in the Vietnam War. While its official designation was "Point Yankee," it was universally referred to as Yankee Station...
, until 22 April 1967. On that day, she started her return voyage to Norfolk. Arriving at Norfolk on 8 June, Shasta completed her only circumnavigation of the globe. During this voyage, she transited the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
and stopped at Valleta, Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
; and Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
.
Following overhaul, Shasta weighed anchor for what was to be her final deployment. En route to Rota, Spain
Rota, Spain
-External references:*, official website * On-line since 1999! News, premiere information, pictures, weather, etc. Into Spanish, English... ****- External links :...
, and assignment with the 6th Fleet, she was diverted to assist in the unsuccessful search for nuclear submarine, USS Scorpion (SSN-589)
USS Scorpion (SSN-589)
USS Scorpion was a Skipjack-class nuclear submarine of the United States Navy, and the sixth ship of the U.S. Navy to carry that name. Scorpion was declared lost on 5 June 1968 with 99 crew members dying in the incident. The USS Scorpion is one of two nuclear submarines the U.S...
, which was lost with all hands 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...
. Main engine difficulties caused Shasta to cut short her projected six-month deployment and return to Norfolk for major repairs. She was placed in a reduced operating status until 1 July 1969, when her name was struck from the Navy list. On 24 March 1970, Shasta was sold to Mr. Isaac Valera of Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
for scrapping by the Spanish company, Revalorizacionde Materials, S.A.
Awards and honors
Shasta received five battle stars for World War IIWorld 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...
and one for Vietnam service.