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USS Salamaua (CVE-96)
Encyclopedia
USS Salamaua (CVE-96) was an Casablanca class
escort carrier of the United States Navy
. She was originally named Anguilla Bay (ACV-96). It was reclassified CVE-96 on 15 July 1943; renamed Salamaua on 6 November 1943; laid down under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 1133) on 4 February 1944 by the Kaiser Shipbuilding Co., Vancouver, Washington
; launched on 22 April 1944; sponsored by Mrs. W. J. Mullins; and commissioned on 26 May 1944, Captain
Joseph I. Taylor, Jr. in command.
, then returned to California
, whence she conducted a similar run to Finschhafen
, New Guinea
. On 1 September, she returned to Alameda, California
, underwent overhaul; conducted training exercises, and on 16 October, again sailed west from San Diego. She arrived at Ulithi
on 5 November, then continued on to the Palau
s and the Philippines
. From the 14th-23rd, she furnished air cover for convoys in the Leyte Gulf
area, then proceeded to the Admiralties to stage for the invasion of Luzon
.
She departed Seeadler Harbor
on 27 December and moved north. On 6 January 1945, she arrived off the entrance to Lingayen Gulf
. Her planes began blasting enemy positions ashore and providing air cover for the approaching Allied ships. On the 9th, they provided air cover for the troops landing on the assault beaches, then continued that support until the 13th.
Just before 0900 on that day, a kamikaze
carrying two 551 pound (250 kg) bombs crashed on Salamauas flight deck. 15 men were killed, and over 80 injured. Damage was extensive: the flight deck, the hangar deck, and spaces below were set ablaze; one of the bombs, failing to explode, punched through the starboard side at the waterline; power, communications, and steering failed; and one of her engine rooms flooded, preventing repairs to her starboard engine, which had quit. But by 0910, her gunners had splashed two more kamikazes.
Temporary repairs enabled the CVE to return to San Francisco. Arriving on 26 February, repairs were quickly completed; and, on 21 April, she moved west again. On 20 May, she arrived at Guam
, where she continued on to the Ryukyu Islands
where she joined other escort carriers on the 26th to support land operations on Okinawa. On 4 June, she joined a logistic support group, but on the 5th, she was damaged by a typhoon. Repairs were made at Guam and, toward the end of July, she assumed antisubmarine patrol duty in the Marianas-Okinawa convoy lanes. In August, she shifted to the Leyte-Okinawa lanes, where she remained until after the mid-month Japanese surrender.
On the 25th, Salamaua returned to Leyte, replenished, then escorted a troop convoy to Tokyo Bay
. The convoy arrived on 2 September, and the CVE's planes photographed the landing of the occupation troops at Yokohama
the same day. After guarding a second convoy into Tokyo Bay, she joined the "Magic Carpet" fleet, embarked veterans for transport to the United States, and disembarked them at Alameda on 3 October.
Before the end of the year, Salamaua completed two more "Magic Carpet" runs. In 1946, she prepared for inactivation. She was decommissioned on 9 May 1946, struck from the Naval Vessel Register
on the 21st, and subsequently sold to the Zidell Ship Dismantling Co., Portland, Oregon, for scrapping on 18 November 1946.
Casablanca class escort carrier
The Casablanca class escort aircraft carriers were the greatest number of not only escort carriers, but also any size aircraft carrier ever built to a like-design by any nation at any time. Fifty were laid down, launched and commissioned within the space of less than two years - 3 November 1942...
escort carrier of 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...
. She was originally named Anguilla Bay (ACV-96). It was reclassified CVE-96 on 15 July 1943; renamed Salamaua on 6 November 1943; laid down under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 1133) on 4 February 1944 by the Kaiser Shipbuilding Co., Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver, 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...
; launched on 22 April 1944; sponsored by Mrs. W. J. Mullins; and commissioned on 26 May 1944, Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
Joseph I. Taylor, Jr. in command.
Service history
Following shakedown off the west coast, Salamaua transported planes and cargo from San Diego to Pearl HarborPearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
, then returned to California
California
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...
, whence she conducted a similar run to Finschhafen
Finschhafen
Finschhafen is a district on the northeast coast of the Morobe province of Papua New Guinea. It is named after the port of the same name.The port was discovered in 1884 by the German researcher Otto Finsch. In 1885 the German colony of German New Guinea created a town on the site and named it...
, New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. On 1 September, she returned to Alameda, California
Alameda, California
Alameda is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located on Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, and is adjacent to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay. The Bay Farm Island portion of the city is adjacent to the Oakland International Airport. At the 2010 census, the city had a...
, underwent overhaul; conducted training exercises, and on 16 October, again sailed west from San Diego. She arrived at Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
on 5 November, then continued on to the Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
s and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. From the 14th-23rd, she furnished air cover for convoys in the Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf is a body of water immediately east of the island of Leyte in the Philippines, adjoining the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, at . The Gulf is bounded on the north by the island of Samar, which is separated from Leyte on the west by the narrow San Juanico Strait, and on the south by...
area, then proceeded to the Admiralties to stage for the invasion of Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
.
She departed Seeadler Harbor
Seeadler Harbor
Seeadler Harbor, also known as Port Seeadler, is located on Manus Island, Admiralty Islands, Papua New Guinea and played an important role in World War II...
on 27 December and moved north. On 6 January 1945, she arrived off the entrance to Lingayen Gulf
Lingayen Gulf
The Lingayen Gulf is an extension of the South China Sea on Luzon in the Philippines stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central...
. Her planes began blasting enemy positions ashore and providing air cover for the approaching Allied ships. On the 9th, they provided air cover for the troops landing on the assault beaches, then continued that support until the 13th.
Just before 0900 on that day, a kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
carrying two 551 pound (250 kg) bombs crashed on Salamauas flight deck. 15 men were killed, and over 80 injured. Damage was extensive: the flight deck, the hangar deck, and spaces below were set ablaze; one of the bombs, failing to explode, punched through the starboard side at the waterline; power, communications, and steering failed; and one of her engine rooms flooded, preventing repairs to her starboard engine, which had quit. But by 0910, her gunners had splashed two more kamikazes.
Temporary repairs enabled the CVE to return to San Francisco. Arriving on 26 February, repairs were quickly completed; and, on 21 April, she moved west again. On 20 May, she arrived at Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, where she continued on to the Ryukyu Islands
Ryukyu Islands
The , also known as the , is a chain of islands in the western Pacific, on the eastern limit of the East China Sea and to the southwest of the island of Kyushu in Japan. From about 1829 until the mid 20th century, they were alternately called Luchu, Loochoo, or Lewchew, akin to the Mandarin...
where she joined other escort carriers on the 26th to support land operations on Okinawa. On 4 June, she joined a logistic support group, but on the 5th, she was damaged by a typhoon. Repairs were made at Guam and, toward the end of July, she assumed antisubmarine patrol duty in the Marianas-Okinawa convoy lanes. In August, she shifted to the Leyte-Okinawa lanes, where she remained until after the mid-month Japanese surrender.
On the 25th, Salamaua returned to Leyte, replenished, then escorted a troop convoy to Tokyo Bay
Tokyo Bay
is a bay in the southern Kantō region of Japan. Its old name was .-Geography:Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Bōsō Peninsula to the east and the Miura Peninsula to the west. In a narrow sense, Tokyo Bay is the area north of the straight line formed by the on the Miura Peninsula on one end and on...
. The convoy arrived on 2 September, and the CVE's planes photographed the landing of the occupation troops at Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
the same day. After guarding a second convoy into Tokyo Bay, she joined the "Magic Carpet" fleet, embarked veterans for transport to the United States, and disembarked them at Alameda on 3 October.
Before the end of the year, Salamaua completed two more "Magic Carpet" runs. In 1946, she prepared for inactivation. She was decommissioned on 9 May 1946, 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 the 21st, and subsequently sold to the Zidell Ship Dismantling Co., Portland, Oregon, for scrapping on 18 November 1946.
External links
- Photo gallery at navsource.org