USS Point Cruz
_underway_on_25_June_1955_(NNAM.1996.488.035.047).jpg) USS Point Cruz (CVE-119), 25 June 1955
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USS Point Cruz |
| Builder | Todd Pacific Shipyards |
| Laid down | 4 December 1944 |
| Launched | 18 May 1945 |
| Commissioned | 16 October 1945 |
| Decommissioned | 30 June 1947 |
| Recommissioned | 26 July 1951 |
| Decommissioned | 31 August 1956 |
| Reclassified | Cargo Ship and Aircraft Ferry, AKV-19, 17 May 1957 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Commencement Bay-class escort carrier |
| Displacement | 21,397 long tons (21,740 t) |
| Length | 557 ft 1 in (169.80 m) loa |
| Beam | 75 ft (23 m) |
| Draft | 32 ft (9.8 m) |
| Installed power | |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph) |
| Complement | 1,066 |
| Armament |
|
| Aircraft carried | 33 |
| Aviation facilities | 2 × aircraft catapults |
USS Point Cruz (CVE-119) was a Commencement Bay-class escort carrier of the United States Navy. Originally named Trocadero Bay until 5 June 1944 when it was renamed after the Honiara suburb Point Cruz, which was an important location during the Guadalcanal Campaign. She was laid down on 4 December 1944 by Todd Pacific Shipyards Incorporated, Tacoma, Washington; launched on 18 May 1945, sponsored by Mrs. Earl R. DeLong; and commissioned on 16 October 1945.
Design[edit]
_underway_in_January_1955.jpeg)
In 1941, as United States participation in World War II became increasingly likely, the US Navy embarked on a construction program for escort carriers, which were converted from transport ships of various types. Many of the escort carrier types were converted from C3-type transports, but the Sangamon-class escort carriers were instead rebuilt oil tankers. These proved to be very successful ships, and the Commencement Bay class, authorized for Fiscal Year 1944, were an improved version of the Sangamon design. The new ships were faster, had improved aviation facilities, and had better internal compartmentation.[1]
Point Cruz was 557 ft 1 in (169.80 m) long overall, with a beam of 75 ft (23 m) at the waterline, which extended to 105 ft 2 in (32.05 m) at maximum. She displaced 21,397 long tons (21,740 t) at full load, of which 12,876 long tons (13,083 t) could be fuel oil (though some of her storage tanks were converted to permanently store seawater for ballast), and at full load she had a draft of 27 ft 11 in (8.51 m). The ship's superstructure consisted of a small island. She had a complement of 1,066 officers and enlisted men.[2]
The ship was powered by two Allis-Chalmers geared steam turbines, each driving one screw propeller, using steam provided by four Combustion Engineering-manufactured water-tube boilers. The propulsion system was rated to produce a total of 16,000 shp (12,000 kW) for a top speed of 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph). Given the very large storage capacity for oil, the ships of the Commencement Bay class could steam for some 23,900 nautical miles (44,300 km; 27,500 mi) at a speed of 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).[2]
Her defensive anti-aircraft armament consisted of two 5 in (127 mm) dual-purpose guns in single mounts, thirty-six 40 mm (2 in) Bofors guns, and twenty 20 mm (1 in) Oerlikon light AA cannons. The Bofors guns were placed in three quadruple and twelve twin mounts, while the Oerlikon guns were all mounted individually. She carried 33 planes, which could be launched from two aircraft catapults. Two elevators transferred aircraft from the hangar to the flight deck.[2]
Service history[edit]
The ship was laid down at the Todd Pacific Shipyards in Tacoma, Washington, originally under the name Trocadero Bay, on 4 December 1944. During construction, she was renamed Point Cruz, after a significant battle fought during the Guadalcanal campaign in November 1942. The completed hull was launched on 18 May 1945 and commissioned into active service on 16 October, after the end of World War II.[3]
Following acceptance and shakedown, she conducted pilot qualifications off the West Coast from October 1945 to March 1946. Thereafter she ferried aircraft to forward bases in WestPac. She entered Puget Sound Naval Shipyard on 3 March 1947 for inactivation; was decommissioned on 30 June 1947 and entered the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Bremerton, Washington.
After the start of hostilities in Korea the ship was activated and recommissioned on 26 July 1951. Point Cruz departed Bremerton on 4 January 1953 after coastal operations and an extensive overhaul modifying her for use as an anti-submarine warfare Hunter-Killer Group carrier. During the transit to San Diego, Point Cruz was damaged in a severe Pacific storm and repairs required several months.
Based at Sasebo, Japan, Point Cruz patrolled the Korean coast in the spring of 1953.(Captain John T. Hayward took command in July 1953.) After the armistice, she served as base for a helicopter squadron that took part in "Operation Platform", airlifting Indian troops to the Panmunjom buffer zone to supervise the prisoner of war exchange.
The CVE returned to San Diego in late December 1953, and after training and additional overhaul deployed to WestPac again in April 1954, under the command of Captain John T. Hayward. In the Far East the carrier served as command ship for Carrier Division 17.
The ship returned to San Diego in November 1954, and deployed again on 24 August 1955. While in the Pacific operating with the 7th Fleet, she served as flagship of Carrier Division 15. Point Cruz departed Yokosuka on 31 January 1956 and arrived at Long Beach, California, in early February for inactivation at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. Decommissioned on 31 August 1956, CVE-119 was placed in the Bremerton Group of the Pacific Reserve Fleet. While in a reserve status, she was redesignated an aircraft transport, AKV-19, on 17 May 1957.
Point Cruz was reactivated on 23 August 1965 and placed under the operational control of the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) as USNS Point Cruz (T-AKV-19) in September 1965. Commencing service as an aircraft ferry for MSTS, Point Cruz provided logistical support for American forces in South East Asia.
She was placed out of service on 16 October 1969, struck from the Navy list on 15 September 1970, and sold for scrap in 1971.
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
- Friedman, Norman (1986). "United States of America". In Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 105–133. ISBN 978-0-85177-245-5.
- "Point Cruz (CVE-119)". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Navy Department, Naval History and Heritage Command. 27 April 2016. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
External links[edit]
