USS ''LST-247'' was a

tank landing ship A Landing Ship, Tank (LST) is a ship first developed during World War II (1939–1945) to support amphibious operations by carrying tanks, vehicles, cargo, and landing troops directly onto a low-slope beach with no docks or piers. The shallow d ...

in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. Like many of her class, she was not named and is properly referred to by her

hull Hull may refer to: Structures * The hull of an armored fighting vehicle, housing the chassis * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a sea-going craft * Submarine hull Ma ...

designation.

History

''LST-247'' was laid down on 12 May 1943 in Evansville, IN. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, ''LST-247'' was assigned to the

Pacific theater The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

and participated in the following operations: * Bougainville – February 1944 * Invasion of Hollandia – April 1944 * Invasion of

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...

– July 1944 * Invasion of

Iwo Jima is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands, which lie south of the Bonin Islands and together with them make up the Ogasawara Subprefecture, Ogasawara Archipelago. Together with the Izu Islands, they make up Japan's Nanpō Islands. Although sout ...

– February 1945 ''LST-247'' beached at Kukum Beach, on the US-held island of

Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomons by area and the second- ...

on 21 January 1944 accompanied by LSTs ''399'' and ''200''. She delivered over 500 tons of deck cargo, 170 tons of rolling cargo, 14

officers An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

, and 235

enlisted men An enlisted rank (also known as an enlisted grade or enlisted rate) is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or warrant officers, except in United States m ...

from the 106th Reconnaissance Squadron. Immediately following this, ''LST-247'' then headed for Bougainville, where she delivered additional troops and equipment. In February the crew shot down a Japanese Betty Bomber. In late March, the crew received orders to sail for Milne Bay,

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

, where they began preparations for the Hollandia invasion at Aitape. The ship beached at Aitape at sunrise on 23 April but damaged her anchor winch. She managed to retract from the beach by sunset. ''LST-247'' set sail for

Saipan Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...

in June 1944, where there were run-ins with the Japanese. The task group came under attack by torpedo planes on two separate occasions, and during one incident, shot down friendly aircraft when it approached unexpectedly. The ship's task during the

invasion was in picking up casualties and bringing them to Pearl Harbor, where she arrived in August 1944. She underwent maintenance and resumed sail in January 1945, where she participated in the February amphibious assault on the Japanese stronghold island of

. She retracted from Iwo Jima after spending nearly a month on the beach. By April 1945, ''LST-247'' was back at

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 Reci ...

. She set sail for

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

to undergo extensive repairs. In August, she arrived at Pearl Harbor, where she was redesignated as a Landing Ship Tank (Hospital) ''LST(H)-247'' on 15 September 1945. She was decommissioned nearly a year after this, and was sold for scrap to William H. Skinner in 1947. ''LST-247'' was awarded one

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star 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 service period. T ...

for

service.

Sources

* *

External links

Service Timeline

*
Crew list
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lst-0247 World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Ships built in Evansville, Indiana 1943 ships