Haskell class attack transport

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Haskell Class Attack Transport (APA)

General characteristics

Displacement:

6,873 tons

Length:

455 feet

Beam:

62 feet

Draft:

24 feet

Propulsion:

Oil Fired Steam Turbine
1 Shaft

Speed:

17 knots

Range:

Complement:

56 Officers, 480 Enlisted

Armament:

1 5"/38 gun
1 40 mm quad mount
4 40 mm twin mounts
10 20 mm single mounts

Transport

Troops:

86 Officers, 1,475 Enlisted

Cargo Capacity:

150,000 ft.³; 2,900 tons

Boats:

25 Assault craft:	2	LCM(3)
	23	LCVP

1 Captain's Gig

Haskell class attack transports (APA) 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.

The Haskells were very active in the World War II Pacific Theater of Operations, landing Marines and Army troops and transporting casualties at Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Ships of the class were among the first Allied ships to enter Tokyo Bay at the end of World War II, landing the first occupation troops at Yokosuka. After the end of World War II, most participated in Operation Magic Carpet, the massive sealift of US personnel back to the United States. A few of the Haskell-class were reactivated for the Korean conflict, with some staying in service into the Vietnam War.

The Haskell-class design, Maritime Commission standard type VC2-S-AP5, is a sub type of the World War II Victory ship design. 117 Haskell-class ships were launched in 1944 and 1945, with 14 more being cancelled.

1 Design
2 Ships of the Haskell Class
3 Fate
4 External links
5 References

[edit] Design

USS Rutland (APA-192) lowering an LCM off Iwo Jima, 1945

The VC2-S-AP5 design was intended for the transport and landing of over 1,500 troops and their heavy combat equipment. During Operation Magic Carpet, up to 1,900 personnel were caried homeward.^[1]

The Haskells carried 25 landing craft to deliver the troops and equipment right onto the beach. The 23 main boats were the 36 foot (11 m) long, LCVP. They were designed to carry 36 equipped troops. The other 2 landing craft were the 50 foot (15 m) long LCM(3), capable of carrying 60 troops or 30 tons (27 t) of cargo. They also carried one Gig.

The Haskell class ships were armed with one 5"/38 caliber gun, twelve Bofors 40 mm guns (one quad mount, four dual mounts), and ten Oerlikon 20 mm guns.

[edit] Ships of the Haskell Class

Haskell class attack transports included APA-117, USS Haskell (APA-117), the lead ship, through APA-247, the never completed USS Mecklenburg. APA-181 through APA-186 were never named and cancelled in 1944. APA-240 through APA-247 were named, but cancelled in 1945 when the war ended. With the special exception of the USS Marvin H. McIntyre (APA-129), the Haskell-class ships were all named after Counties of the United States.

See List of Haskell-class Attack Transports.

[edit] Fate

Most of the Haskell-class ships were mothballed in 1946. A few remained in service. Many of the Haskell-class ships were scrapped in 1973-75^[2]. A few were converted into Missile Range Instrumentation Ships.

As of the 2006-09-30 MARAD inventory, there are only two ships built as Haskell-class left in the inventory, both in the National Defense Reserve Fleet at James River, Virginia:

USS Gage (APA-168), the last remaining ship in the Haskell configuration, currently pending review upon whether or not it will become a museum ship.[1]
USS Sherburne (APA-205), which was converted to USS Range Sentinel (AGM-22)