USS Condor (MSC(O)-5/AMS-5/YMS-192) was a built for the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. She was the second U.S. Navy ship named for the condor

Condor

Condor is the name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere.They are:* The Andean Condor which inhabits the Andean mountains....

.

History

Condor was laid down as YMS-192 on 30 September 1942 by the Greenport Basin and Construction Co. of Greenport

Greenport, Suffolk County, New York

Greenport is a village in Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located on the north fork of Long Island. The population was 2,048 at the 2000 census....

, Long Island, New York; launched, 5 December 1942; completed and commissioned USS YMS-192, 13 June 1943.

YMS-192 served along the U.S. East Coast and in the Caribbean

Caribbean

The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...

 until the Atlantic War ended in May 1945. Sent to the Pacific

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

, she took part in post-war mine clearance operations off Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. YMS-192 returned to the U.S. in April 1946 and was decommissioned in May. While laid up in reserve at San Diego, California

San Diego, California

San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...

, she was reclassified as a Motor Minesweeper, AMS-5 and named USS Condor 18 February 1947.

Recommissioned for Korean War

Korean War

The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...

 service in November 1950, Condor deployed to the combat zone in March 1951. She provided minesweeping and patrol services off Korea

Korea

Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

 and Japan to the end of the conflict in July 1953 and continued her activities in that area during the following years.

Condor was reclassified as coastal minesweeper

Coastal minesweeper

Coastal minesweeper is a term used by the United States Navy to indicate a minesweeper intended for coastal use as opposed to participating in fleet operations at sea....

 MSC(O)-5 on 7 February 1955. Condor was loaned to Japan a month later. She was renamed JDS Ujishima (MSC-655) during her service with the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force.

Condor was returned to the U.S. Navy in early 1967, and struck from the Naval Vessel Register

Naval Vessel Register

The Naval Vessel Register 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 the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...

on 31 March 1967. The veteran minesweeper was sunk as a target August 1968.