USS ''Quest'' (AM-281) was an built for the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. She was decommissioned in 1947 after wartime service and transferred to the Philippine Navy in 1948 where she served as

presidential yacht Presidential yacht may refer to a vessel of a country's navy that would be specially used by the country's president. It is common for a vessel to be designated as the presidential yacht during a fleet review. Some countries (below) have vessels p ...

RPS ''Pag-asa'' (APO-21). In 1955, she was renamed ''Santa Maria'' and, later, ''Mount Samat'' (TK-21), serving as a patrol corvette of the . She was decommissioned from the Philippine Navy in 1970; beyond that, her fate is not reported in secondary sources.

Career

''Quest'' was laid down 24 November 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 ...

Co., Chickasaw, Alabama; launched 16 March 1944; sponsored by Mrs. O. R. Johnson, and commissioned 25 October 1944. After fitting out, training, and

shakedown Shakedown 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 * Extortion, ...

exercises, ''Quest'' sailed for

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropo ...

, 21 December to report for duty with task group CTG 23.9. Upon arriving at Portland, the minesweeper participated in

antisubmarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...

exercises until departing for Norfolk, Virginia, 29 December. Arriving 31 December, she remained there until 4 January 1945, when she departed for the Panama Canal Zone en route to the Pacific Fleet. During her voyage to the Panama Canal Zone, she served as

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

escort to repair ship and oiler . Arriving at

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...

, 24 January, ''Quest'' conducted exercises along the

U.S. West Coast The West Coast of the United States, also known as the Pacific Coast, Pacific states, and the western seaboard, is the coastline along which the Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. The term typically refers to the contiguous U.S ...

until 1 March, when she became the

school ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house class ...

at the Naval Small Craft Training Center,

San Pedro, California San Pedro ( ; Spanish: "St. Peter") is a neighborhood within the City of Los Angeles, California. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los Angeles in 1909. The Port of Los Angeles, a major international seaport, is partially located wi ...

. Relieved of this duty 24 March, she sailed for San Diego to take up target towing duties until late April, when she returned to San Pedro to once again resume her training ship duties. Detached from this duty 20 August, she sailed for

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...

, arriving 28 August. Departing

3 September, as part of task unit TU 10.15.16, she sailed for

Eniwetok Enewetak Atoll (; also spelled Eniwetok Atoll or sometimes Eniewetok; mh, Ānewetak, , or , ; known to the Japanese as Brown Atoll or Brown Island; ja, ブラウン環礁) is a large coral atoll of 40 islands in the Pacific Ocean and with i ...

Atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can gr ...

. She then sailed to

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

, via Saipan, arriving 3 October. ''Quest'' participated in minesweeping operations in and around

and Southern Japan until 5 November when she sailed for the East China Sea in company with , and . After clearing minefields in the area, the minesweeper returned to

Sasebo is a core city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is also the second largest city in Nagasaki Prefecture, after its capital, Nagasaki. On 1 June 2019, the city had an estimated population of 247,739 and a population density of 581 persons p ...

, Japan arriving in late November. ''Quest'' participated in minesweeping operations in Japan until 20 February 1946, when she began a voyage to

Atoll, acting as escort for ''YMS-431'' and ''YMS-439''. Arriving at Eniwetok 12 March, ''Quest'' served as a logistics support vessel for the two YMSs as they swept mines around Eniwetok in preparation for nuclear testing under

Operation Crossroads Operation Crossroads was a pair of nuclear weapon tests conducted by the United States at Bikini Atoll in mid-1946. They were the first nuclear weapon tests since Trinity in July 1945, and the first detonations of nuclear devices since the ...

. On 23 March ''Quest'', in company with ''YMS-57'' sailed for

Subic Bay Subic Bay is a bay on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, about northwest of Manila Bay. An extension of the South China Sea, its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility, U.S. Naval Base Sub ...

arriving 11 April. She remained there until 2 May, at which time she was decommissioned. Struck from the U.S.

Naval Vessel Register The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from t ...

29 September 1947, ''Quest'' was not yet through with her naval service, for on 2 July 1948, she was transferred to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Converted to the Presidential

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

she was designated APO-21 and commissioned later that year. She was renamed ''Pag-asa'', and has served under the names ''Santa Maria'' and ''Mount Samat''. She was decommissioned from the Philippine Navy in 1970; She sunk on September 21, 1993 while berthed at Sangley Point during the height of Typhoon Dot, locally known as ''Anding''.The colorful history of BRP Ang Pangulo
/ref>

Honors and awards

As USS ''Quest'', the ship was awarded two

battle stars A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

for her World War II service.

References

*
NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive - ''Quest'' (AM 281)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quest (AM-281) Admirable-class minesweepers Ships built in Chickasaw, Alabama 1944 ships World War II minesweepers of the United States Admirable-class minesweepers of the Philippine Navy Presidential yachts of the Philippines Miguel Malvar-class corvettes Korean War amphibious warfare vessels of the Philippines