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USS Magoffin (APA-199)
Encyclopedia
USS Magoffin (APA-199/LPA-199) was a Haskell-class
attack transport
acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II
for the task of transporting troops to and from combat areas.
; sponsored by Mrs. Fred Sonlotfeldt; and commissioned 25 October 1944, Comdr. Eugene L. McManus in command.
, Magoffin conveyed troops and cargo in the South Pacific until 1 March 1945. On that date she commenced rehearsals at Guadalcanal
for the invasion of the Ryukyus. Underway on the 27th, she steamed with the invasion force for Okinawa, where she participated in the landings 1 April. During the battle for Okinawa, Magoffin, the first ship in Transport Division 54 to be unloaded, assisted in downing two enemy planes. After this campaign Magoffin carried men and cargo between the United States and forward area bases until the following spring. On 10 March 1946, she reported to the 19th Fleet, San Francisco, California
, for inactivation. She decommissioned 14 August 1946.
, Magoffin recommissioned 4 October 1950 and was assigned to the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Departing San Francisco 22 March 1951, she steamed for Japan
where she debarked troops and cargo 7 to 8 April. Magoffin remained in the western Pacific Ocean
conveying troops and cargo between Japan and Korea
and participating in amphibious exercises, two at Sagami Wan, Japan, and one in Korea. She headed for the U.S. West Coast late in August, arriving at San Diego, California
, 8 September for landing exercises and overhaul.
10 July 1952. Arriving a month later at Yufusu, Japan, she commenced a series of amphibious training exercises with Army and Marine units; two exercises were held in Japan and two at Inchon, Korea
. She also participated in an amphibious demonstration staged 15 October off Kojo, North Korea, in an effort to draw reserve Communist units in the area out into the open. In November, she returned to San Diego for exercises and operations along the U.S. west coast. With the exception of one voyage to Japan and back in late August 1953, she operated on the U.S. west coast until departing for the western Pacific in February 1954. Amphibious operations at Iwo Jima
, Okinawa, and Busan
, Korea, were followed, in August, by orders to Indochina
. Arriving at Haiphong
, she embarked refugees for transport to Saigon. By 17 September Magoffin had carried over 6,000 refugees from tyranny to South Vietnam
. Following this “Operation Passage to Freedom
” duty, she returned to San Diego, arriving 21 November 1954.
, the 1958 series of nuclear tests at Eniwetok Atoll.
caused the ship to embark troops at Okinawa and head for the Persian Gulf
. This deployment was to provide support, if necessary, to the British and American forces sent into Jordan
and Lebanon
. However, tension eased after the Navy’s resolute action averted Communist subversion in Lebanon, allowing Magoffin to return to her U.S. 7th Fleet station.
, where the Maddox incident in the Gulf of Tonkin
.
service at Okinawa. She received two more battle stars (campaign stars) during the Korean War during her efforts there during 1951 and 1952. She received an additional four campaign stars during the Vietnam War
.
Haskell class attack transport
Haskell-class attack transports were amphibious assault ships of the United States Navy created in 1944. They were designed to transport 1,500 troops and their combat equipment, and land them on hostile shores with the ships' integral landing craft....
attack transport
Attack transport
Attack Transport is a United States Navy ship classification.-History:In the early 1940s, as the United States Navy expanded in response to the threat of involvement in World War II, a number of civilian passenger ships and some freighters were acquired, converted to transports and given hull...
acquired by the U.S. Navy 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...
for the task of transporting troops to and from combat areas.
World War II service
Magoffin (APA 199), built under Maritime Commission contract, launched 4 October 1944 by Kaiser Shipbuilding Co., Vancouver, WashingtonVancouver, Washington
Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Incorporated in 1857, it is the fourth largest city in the state with a 2010 census population of 161,791 as of April 1, 2010...
; sponsored by Mrs. Fred Sonlotfeldt; and commissioned 25 October 1944, Comdr. Eugene L. McManus in command.
Okinawa Landing
Attached to Transport Division 54 during post commissioning amphibious training off the coast of southern CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Magoffin conveyed troops and cargo in the South Pacific until 1 March 1945. On that date she commenced rehearsals at Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
for the invasion of the Ryukyus. Underway on the 27th, she steamed with the invasion force for Okinawa, where she participated in the landings 1 April. During the battle for Okinawa, Magoffin, the first ship in Transport Division 54 to be unloaded, assisted in downing two enemy planes. After this campaign Magoffin carried men and cargo between the United States and forward area bases until the following spring. On 10 March 1946, she reported to the 19th Fleet, San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, for inactivation. She decommissioned 14 August 1946.
Reactivated during Korean War
After the outbreak of the Korean WarKorean 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...
, Magoffin recommissioned 4 October 1950 and was assigned to the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Departing San Francisco 22 March 1951, she steamed for Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
where she debarked troops and cargo 7 to 8 April. Magoffin remained in the western Pacific Ocean
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...
conveying troops and cargo between Japan and 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 participating in amphibious exercises, two at Sagami Wan, Japan, and one in Korea. She headed for the U.S. West Coast late in August, arriving 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...
, 8 September for landing exercises and overhaul.
Korean War operations
Magoffin again sailed for the Far EastFar East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
10 July 1952. Arriving a month later at Yufusu, Japan, she commenced a series of amphibious training exercises with Army and Marine units; two exercises were held in Japan and two at Inchon, 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...
. She also participated in an amphibious demonstration staged 15 October off Kojo, North Korea, in an effort to draw reserve Communist units in the area out into the open. In November, she returned to San Diego for exercises and operations along the U.S. west coast. With the exception of one voyage to Japan and back in late August 1953, she operated on the U.S. west coast until departing for the western Pacific in February 1954. Amphibious operations at Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
, Okinawa, and Busan
Busan
Busan , formerly spelled Pusan is South Korea's second largest metropolis after Seoul, with a population of around 3.6 million. The Metropolitan area population is 4,399,515 as of 2010. It is the largest port city in South Korea and the fifth largest port in the world...
, Korea, were followed, in August, by orders to Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
. Arriving at Haiphong
Haiphong
, also Haiphong, is the third most populous city in Vietnam. The name means, "coastal defence".-History:Hai Phong was originally founded by Lê Chân, the female general of a Vietnamese revolution against the Chinese led by the Trưng Sisters in the year 43 C.E.The area which is now known as Duong...
, she embarked refugees for transport to Saigon. By 17 September Magoffin had carried over 6,000 refugees from tyranny to South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
. Following this “Operation Passage to Freedom
Operation Passage to Freedom
Operation Passage to Freedom was the term used by the United States Navy to describe its transportation in 1954–55 of 310,000 Vietnamese civilians, soldiers and non-Vietnamese members of the French Army from communist North Vietnam to South Vietnam...
” duty, she returned to San Diego, arriving 21 November 1954.
Nuclear testing
From that day to the end of her Navy service, Magoffin has operated, with the exception of the years 1959, 1960, 1963, and 1966, in the western Pacific for at least 6 months out of each year. Two of the more historically eventful years during this period were 1958 and 1964. In the spring of 1958, the transport participated in Operation Hardtack IOperation Hardtack I
Operation Hardtack I was a series of 35 nuclear tests conducted by the United States in 1958 in the Pacific Ocean.Operation Newsreel was a series of three high-altitude nuclear tests conducted as part of Hardtack I. The individual tests in the series were Orange, Teak and Yucca.-Test Blasts:-...
, the 1958 series of nuclear tests at Eniwetok Atoll.
Diversion to the Middle East
Shortly after the tests, the mid July politico military flareups in the volatile Middle EastMiddle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
caused the ship to embark troops at Okinawa and head for the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
. This deployment was to provide support, if necessary, to the British and American forces sent into Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
and Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
. However, tension eased after the Navy’s resolute action averted Communist subversion in Lebanon, allowing Magoffin to return to her U.S. 7th Fleet station.
Return Pacific Seventh Fleet
6 August 1964 saw Magoffin, having completed a 6 month tour with the U.S. 7th Fleet and heading for her home port of San Diego, ordered back to Okinawa to embark troops. The ship then steamed for VietnamVietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, where the Maddox incident in the Gulf of Tonkin
Gulf of Tonkin
The Gulf of Tonkin is an arm of the South China Sea, lying off the coast of northeastern Vietnam.-Etymology:The name Tonkin, written "東京" in Hán tự and Đông Kinh in romanised Vietnamese, means "Eastern Capital", and is the former toponym for Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam...
.
Vietnam War operations
Since that time, Magoffin’s tours on the U.S. west coast continued to include periodic overhauls, coastal operations, and amphibious exercises. Her tours in the western Pacific have been in support of operations in Southeast Asia, transporting troops and cargo, participating in amphibious operations, and, on occasion, serving as station ship in Da-Nang harbor.Deactivation and scrapping
Magoffin returned to San Diego 9 December 1967 to prepare for inactivation. She decommissioned 10 April 1968 and entered the Naval Defense Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay, California, under the custody of the Maritime Administration. She was redesignated LPA 199 on 1 January 1969.Military awards and honors
Magoffin received one battle star for World War IIWorld 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...
service at Okinawa. She received two more battle stars (campaign stars) during the Korean War during her efforts there during 1951 and 1952. She received an additional four campaign stars during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.