Windsor class attack transport
Encyclopedia
The Windsor-class attack transport was a class of US Navy attack transport
. Ships of the class saw service in World War II
.
Like all attack transports, the purpose of the Windsors was to transport troops and their equipment to foreign shores in order to execute amphibious
invasions using an array of smaller assault boats
integral to the attack transport itself. Like all the attack transports, the Windsor-class was well armed with antiaircraft weaponry to protect itself and its cargo of troops from air attack in the battle zone.
(DANFS). The ships were based upon the Maritime Commission's ubiquitous C3 cargo
type, but unusually, appear to be of more than one subtype. This is probably because the class entered service in fits and starts, the first two vessels from June 1943 and the remaining seven between July 1944 and January 1945.
The early examples, then, were based upon the C3-S-A1 hull and the later ships on the C3-S-A3, but the last two, Griggs and Grundy have larger length, beam and draft specifications which are inconsistent with their listed subtype, but consistent (in length and beam) with some other C3 subtypes - for example the C3-S-A2 or the C3-S1-A3. It is unknown therefore whether DANFS has listed the subtype incorrectly for these two ships, or whether it has listed the specifications incorrectly. Since ships of a given class usually have the same dimensions, the latter explanation may be the more correct - either that, or the class was constructed of three different C3 hull types, which would make it quite unusual.
Other unusual aspects in regards to this class is that they are listed with a variety of different armaments. Early models had two five-inch guns while the later ships had only one; the Leedstown was at least initially fitted with 1.1" antiaircraft guns instead of 40mm; and Griggs is listed with 8 x 40mm guns and no 20mm, whereas the other ships are listed with a maximum of 2 x 40mm and 22 x 20mm. The Windsors also appear to be more lightly armed than most other attack transport classes, particularly with respect to the 40mm weapon which was considered far more effective than the 20mm gun which comprised most of the Windsors armament.
Most of the ships were built by Bethlehem Steel
at its Sparrows Point Shipyard in Baltimore, Maryland; the last two, Griggs and Grundy, were built by Ingalls Shipbuilding
in Pascagoula, Mississippi
.
. The first two ships of the class, the and , were built and commissioned in mid-1943, much earlier than the later units. Consequently they saw much more action, both earning at least five battle stars. The next two were not commissioned until at least July 1944 and only saw three combat operations between them. The remaining five ships arrived too late to see combat and served out the war on transport and training missions.
After V-J Day, the Windsors, like virtually all classes of attack transport, were assigned first to transporting fresh troops to occupation missions in Japan
and its former occupied territories such as China
and Korea
, and later to Operation Magic Carpet, the giant sealift organized to bring millions of demobilizing servicemen back to the United States
.
The class as a whole was subsequently demobilized in early 1946, and the individual ships sold into commercial service, mostly as cargo ships. Most of the ships were scrapped in the early to mid-1970s, having enjoyed overall service lives of approximately 30 years. A notable exception was the . Following her refurbishment and service as passenger-cargo ship SS Excambion, she was loaned to the Texas Maritime Academy in April 1965 and spent the next 30 years as training ship USTS Texas Clipper
. She was finally decommissioned in 1995 and sunk as an artificial reef in 2007. Another Windsor class ship, became dormitory ship for Stevens Institute of Technology
after serving as passenger-cargo ship .
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...
. Ships of the class saw service 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...
.
Like all attack transports, the purpose of the Windsors was to transport troops and their equipment to foreign shores in order to execute amphibious
Amphibious warfare
Amphibious warfare is the use of naval firepower, logistics and strategy to project military power ashore. In previous eras it stood as the primary method of delivering troops to non-contiguous enemy-held terrain...
invasions using an array of smaller assault 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...
integral to the attack transport itself. Like all the attack transports, the Windsor-class was well armed with antiaircraft weaponry to protect itself and its cargo of troops from air attack in the battle zone.
Class history
The Windsor class is inconsistently documented in the US Navy's official Dictionary of American Naval Fighting ShipsDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
The Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships is the official reference work for the basic facts about ships used by the United States Navy...
(DANFS). The ships were based upon the Maritime Commission's ubiquitous C3 cargo
Type C3 ship
Type C3 ships were the third type of cargo ship designed by the United States Maritime Commission in the late 1930s. As it had done with the Type C1 ships and Type C2 ships, MARCOM circulated preliminary plans for comment...
type, but unusually, appear to be of more than one subtype. This is probably because the class entered service in fits and starts, the first two vessels from June 1943 and the remaining seven between July 1944 and January 1945.
The early examples, then, were based upon the C3-S-A1 hull and the later ships on the C3-S-A3, but the last two, Griggs and Grundy have larger length, beam and draft specifications which are inconsistent with their listed subtype, but consistent (in length and beam) with some other C3 subtypes - for example the C3-S-A2 or the C3-S1-A3. It is unknown therefore whether DANFS has listed the subtype incorrectly for these two ships, or whether it has listed the specifications incorrectly. Since ships of a given class usually have the same dimensions, the latter explanation may be the more correct - either that, or the class was constructed of three different C3 hull types, which would make it quite unusual.
Other unusual aspects in regards to this class is that they are listed with a variety of different armaments. Early models had two five-inch guns while the later ships had only one; the Leedstown was at least initially fitted with 1.1" antiaircraft guns instead of 40mm; and Griggs is listed with 8 x 40mm guns and no 20mm, whereas the other ships are listed with a maximum of 2 x 40mm and 22 x 20mm. The Windsors also appear to be more lightly armed than most other attack transport classes, particularly with respect to the 40mm weapon which was considered far more effective than the 20mm gun which comprised most of the Windsors armament.
Most of the ships were built by Bethlehem Steel
Bethlehem Steel
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation , based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was once the second-largest steel producer in the United States, after Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based U.S. Steel. After a decline in the U.S...
at its Sparrows Point Shipyard in Baltimore, Maryland; the last two, Griggs and Grundy, were built by Ingalls Shipbuilding
Ingalls Shipbuilding
Ingalls Shipbuilding is a shipyard located in Pascagoula, Mississippi, USA, originally established in 1938, and is now part of Huntington Ingalls Industries...
in Pascagoula, Mississippi
Pascagoula, Mississippi
Pascagoula is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. It is the principal city of the Pascagoula, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area, as a part of the Gulfport–Biloxi–Pascagoula, Mississippi Combined Statistical Area. The population was 26,200 at the 2000 census...
.
In service
Ships of the Windsor class served exclusively in the Pacific TheatrePacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
. The first two ships of the class, the and , were built and commissioned in mid-1943, much earlier than the later units. Consequently they saw much more action, both earning at least five battle stars. The next two were not commissioned until at least July 1944 and only saw three combat operations between them. The remaining five ships arrived too late to see combat and served out the war on transport and training missions.
After V-J Day, the Windsors, like virtually all classes of attack transport, were assigned first to transporting fresh troops to occupation missions in 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...
and its former occupied territories such as China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, and later to Operation Magic Carpet, the giant sealift organized to bring millions of demobilizing servicemen back to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Texas Clipper
USTS Texas Clipper, 473 foot ship, served as a merchant marine training vessel with the Texas Maritime Academy at Texas A&M University at Galveston for 30 years beginning in 1965...
. She was finally decommissioned in 1995 and sunk as an artificial reef in 2007. Another Windsor class ship, became dormitory ship for Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology is a technological university located on a campus in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA – founded in 1870 with an 1868 bequest from Edwin A. Stevens. It is known for its engineering, science, and technological management curricula.The institute has produced leading...
after serving as passenger-cargo ship .