USLHT ''Banahao'' was lighthouse tender that served in the Philippines.

History

On 23 June 1930, she was ordered by the government of the

Commonwealth of the Philippines The Commonwealth of the Philippines (; ) was an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territory and Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States that existed from 1935 to 1946. It was established following the ...

from the German shipbuilder

Schichau-Werke The Schichau-Werke (F. Schichau, Maschinen- und Lokomotivfabrik, Schiffswerft und Eisengießerei GmbH) was a German engineering works and shipyard based in Elbing, Germany (now Elbląg, Poland) on the Frisches Haff (Vistula Lagoon) of then-East ...

, the second of three cutters ordered to serve with the Bureau of Customs as inspection and enforcement ships (the other two ships were her sister ship '' Canlaon'' and the ''Arayat''). She was laid down at Schichau's Danzig shipyard, launched on 13 December 1930, completed in March 1931, and delivered on 4 March 1931. ''Banahao'' was later converted to a

lighthouse tender A lighthouse tender is a ship specifically designed to maintain, support, or tend to lighthouses or lightvessels, providing supplies, fuel, mail, and transportation. The work is often carried out by ships which also act as buoy tenders. In ...

. During the Japanese invasion the Philippines, she returned to her home port of

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

where the

Asiatic Fleet The United States Asiatic Fleet was a fleet of the United States Navy during much of the first half of the 20th century. Before World War II, the fleet patrolled the Philippine Islands. Much of the fleet was destroyed by the Japanese by Februar ...

had retreated. On 28 December 1941, she was attacked by Japanese planes and sunk. Philippine freighter ''Mauban'' was also sunk. She was later raised by the

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...

. Her ultimate fate is unknown.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Banahao 1930 ships Ships built by Schichau Ships built in Danzig Lighthouse tenders of the United States Ships of the Imperial Japanese Army