USS Aludra (AK-72)

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USS Aludra (AK-72) 1942-43.jpg
USS Aludra (AK-72), c. late 1942 or early 1943 – note her deck cargo of four Grumman F4F "Wildcat" fighters and several landing craft
History
US flag 48 stars.svgUnited States
Name
  • Robert T. Lincoln
  • Aludra
Namesake
Orderedas a Type EC2-S-C1 hull, MCE hull 437 [1]
Builder Permanente Metals Corporation, Richmond, California
Cost$1,139,342 [2]
Yard number437 [1]
Way number8 [1]
Laid down2 October 1942
Launched7 December 1942
Sponsored byMrs. Dorothy A. Rainbow
Acquired14 December 1942
Commissioned26 December 1942
Out of service23 June 1943
RenamedAludra, 30 October 1942
Identification
Honours and
awards		1 × battle star
FateSunk, 23 June 1943
General characteristics [3]
Class and type Crater-class cargo ship
Type Type EC2-S-C1
Displacement
  • 4,023 long tons (4,088 t) (standard)
  • 14,550 long tons (14,780 t) (full load)
Length441 ft 6 in (134.57 m)
Beam56 ft 11 in (17.35 m)
Draft28 ft 4 in (8.64 m)
Installed power
  • 2 × Oil fired 450 °F (232 °C) boilers, operating at 220 psi (1,500 kPa) ,  (manufactured by Babcock & Wilcox)
  • 2,500  shp (1,900 kW)
Propulsion
Speed12.5  kn (23.2  km/h; 14.4  mph)
Capacity
  • 7,800 t (7,700 long tons) DWT
  • 444,206 cu ft (12,578.5 m3) (non-refrigerated)
Complement205
Armament

USS Aludra (AK-72) was a Crater-class cargo ship in the service of the US Navy in World War II. Named after the star Aludra in the constellation Canis Major, it was the first ship of the Navy to bear this name. [3]

Contents

Construction

Aludra was laid down 28 October 1942, as liberty ship SS Robert T. Lincoln under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 437, by Permanente Metals Corporation, Yard No. 2, Richmond, California; launched on 7 December 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Dorothy A. Rainbow; renamed Aludra on 30 October 1942; delivered to the Navy on 14 December 1942; and placed in commission at San Francisco, California, on 26 December 1942. [4]

Service history

The new cargo ship joined the Pacific Fleet and held brief shakedown training before departing the west coast on 7 January 1943. She anchored in Dumbea Bay, New Caledonia, on 29 January. The vessel got underway on 2 February for Havannah Harbor, Efate Island, and arrived there two days later. Aludra continued on to Espiritu Santo, where she remained from 11 February through 6 May. [4]

The vessel left Espiritu Santo on 6 May in company with Brooks. The two ships reached Brisbane, Australia, on 11 May and took on cargo. Aludra sailed on 17 May for Auckland, New Zealand. She arrived there on 23 May and spent one week in port taking on supplies and equipment. The ship left Auckland on 30 May but returned that same day to repair a steering casualty. She got underway again on 31 May. [4]

Sinking

Aludra made port calls at Nouméa, New Caledonia, and Guadalcanal. She departed the latter port on 22 June, bound for Espiritu Santo. At 04:44 on 23 June, a torpedo fired by Japanese submarine Ro-103 (Ro-100-class submarine) hit Aludra's port side and exploded. Approximately five hours later, at 09:33, the cargo ship sank in over 2,000 fathoms (12,000 ft; 3,700 m) of water. Two of her crew members were killed and 12 were wounded. [4]

Awards

Aludra earned one battle star for her World War II service. [4]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Kaiser No. 2 2010.
  2. ↑ MARCOM.
  3. 1 2 Navsource 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 DANFS 2015.

Bibliography

11°35′S162°8′E / 11.583°S 162.133°E / -11.583; 162.133

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