USS ''Prime'' (AM-279) was laid down 15 September 1943 by

Gulf Shipbuilding Gulf Shipbuilding Corporation is a former shipbuilding corporation in Chickasaw, Alabama a few miles upstream of the Port of Mobile. Following the company's closure, the land became a part of the Chickasaw Shipyard Village Historic District. His ...

Corp.,

Chickasaw, Alabama Chickasaw is a city in Mobile County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2020 census the population was 6,457, up from 6,106 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Mobile metropolitan area. History Company town In the early 20th century ...

, launched 22 January 1944; sponsored by Mrs. L. W. Thompson, and commissioned 12 September 1944.

World War II Pacific Theatre operations

Following

shakedown Shakedown or Shake Down may refer to: * Shakedown (continuum mechanics), a type of plastic deformation * Shakedown (testing) or a shakedown cruise, a period of testing undergone by a ship, airplane or other craft before being declared operational ...

off the east coast, USS Prime reported to Service Force Atlantic,

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

, 1 December 1944. After duty off

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

and the east coast, she arrived at the

Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone (), also known as just the Canal Zone, was a International zone#Concessions, concession of the United States located in the Isthmus of Panama that existed from 1903 to 1979. It consisted of the Panama Canal and an area gene ...

, and reported for duty to the U.S. Pacific Fleet 12 July 1945. In September, while at

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

, she was assigned to the

Reserve Fleet A reserve fleet is a collection of naval vessels of all types that are fully equipped for service but are not currently needed; they are partially or fully Ship decommissioning, decommissioned. A reserve fleet is informally said to be "in mothba ...

. Following a change of assignment from the 19th to the U.S. 16th Fleet, she was marked expendable in March 1946. Demilitarized, she steamed to

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

, China.

End-of-war deactivation

'' Prime'' was decommissioned 29 May 1946 and sold to China at

, China as Yung Feng (MMC-50) (

Republic of China Navy The Republic of China Navy (ROCN, Chinese, 中華民國海軍) , colloquially known as the Taiwanese Navy ( Chinese, 台湾海军) by Western or mainland Chinese media, or commonly referred as the National Military Navy ( Chinese, 國軍海軍) ...

), decommissioned and struck from the

Naval Register A Navy Directory, Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a co ...

1 May 1973. Fate unknown.

References

External links

Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Admirable-class minesweepers Ships built in Chickasaw, Alabama 1944 ships World War II minesweepers of the United States Admirable-class minesweepers of the Republic of China Navy