USS LSM-478

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ROCS Mei Kun.jpg
ROCS Mei Kun
History
US flag 48 stars.svgUnited States
NameLSM-478
Builder Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston
Laid down10 February 1945
Launched3 March 1945
Commissioned7 April 1945
Decommissioned28 May 1946
Honors and
awards		 See Awards
FateTransferred to France, 1 April 1954
History
Civil and Naval Ensign of France.svg France
NameL9016
Acquired1 April 1954
Commissioned28 June 1954
DecommissionedApril 1956
FateReturned to US, April 1956
History
Flag of the Republic of China.svg Taiwan
Name
  • Mei Kun
  • (美功)
AcquiredNovember 1956
CommissionedNovember 1956
Decommissioned1973
ReclassifiedLSM-352
Stricken1973
Identification Pennant number: LSM-252
FateUnknown
General characteristics
Class and type LSM-1-class landing ship medium
Displacement
  • 520 long tons (528 t) light
  • 743 long tons (755 t) landing
  • 1,095 long tons (1,113 t) full load
Length203 ft 6 in (62.03 m) o/a
Beam34 ft 6 in (10.52 m)
Draft
  • 3 ft 6 in (1.07 m) forward
  • 7 ft 8 in (2.34 m) aft
  • Fully loaded :
    • 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) forward
    • 8 ft 3 in (2.51 m) aft
Propulsion2 × Fairbanks-Morse (model 38D81/8X10, reversible with hydraulic clutch) diesels. Direct drive with 1,440 bhp (1,074 kW) each @ 720 rpm, twin screws
Speed13.2 knots (15.2 mph; 24.4 km/h)
Range4,900  nmi (9,100 km) at 12 kn (22 km/h)
Capacity5 medium or 3 heavy tanks, or 6 LVTs, or 9 DUKWs
Troops2 officers, 46 enlisted
Complement5 officers, 54 enlisted
Armament6 × 20 mm AA gun mounts
Armour10-lb. STS splinter shield to gun mounts, pilot house and conning station

USS LSM-478 was a LSM-1-class landing ship medium in the United States Navy during World War II. The ship was transferred to France as L9016 and Taiwan as ROCS Mei Kun (LSM-252) .

Contents

Construction and career

LSM-478 was laid down on 10 February 1945 at Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, Texas. Launched on 3 March 1945 and commissioned on 7 April 1945.

During World War II, LSM-478 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater. She was assigned to occupation service in the Far East from 4 September to 9 November 1945. [1]

LSM-478 was decommissioned on 28 May 1946. [2]

She was loaned to the French on 1 April 1954. [3]

She was struck from the Navy Register.

The ship was commissioned into the French Navy on 28 June 1954 and renamed L9016. [3] [1] She served in the First Indochina War later that year. [4]

L9016 was returned to the US in April 1956 and then transferred to Taiwan in November 1956, in which she was commissioned in November 1956, as ROCS Mei Kun (LSM-252). She was later redesignated LSM-352.

Underneath the cover of the night in January 1957, the ship escaped China through Kinmen and small waterways of Jinmen to avoid Communist Army's radar. At 8 in the evening, she lifted her anchor and left Liuluo Bay for Taiwan. [5]

The ship was put out of service in 1973 with her fate unknown.

Awards

LST-478 have earned the following awards:

Citations

  1. 1 2 "Landing Ship Medium (LSM)". www.navsource.org. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  2. ↑ "USS LSM 478 (LSM 478) of the US Navy - American Medium landing ship of the LSM class - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Further Information & Corrections: Warship Information Service". Warship International. International Naval Research Organization. 10 (3): 320–335. 1973. JSTOR   44890242.
  4. ↑ "* LSM 9016 (1954/1956) *". www.postenavalemilitaire.com (in French). Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  5. ↑ Zhenzheng, Wu (2011). 群英憶往: 陸軍官校第四軍官訓練班入伍生總隊口述歷史. Government Affairs Office of the Ministry of Defense. pp. 273–274. ISBN   978-9860273151.

Sources

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