USS Vernon County: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|tankTank landing ship in the US Navy}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{More citations needed |date=February 2024}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
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|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class={{sclass-|Terrebonne Parish|tank landing ship}}
|Ship displacement=*2,590 tons (light),
*5,800 tons (full)
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|Ship speed=14 [[Knot (unit)|knots]]
|Ship range=
|Ship boats=Three [[LCVP (United StaetsStates)|LCVP]]s, one [[LCPL]]
|Ship complement=205 (16 [[Commissioned officer|officers]] and 189 [[Enlisted man|enlisted men]]
|Ship troops=395 (15 officers and 380 enlisted men)
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|}
 
'''USS ''Vernon County'' (LST-1161)''' was a [[United States Navy]], {{Sclass-sclass|Terrebonne Parish|tank landing ship}} in commission from 1953 to 1973. She saw extensive service in the [[Vietnam War]] before being transferred to the [[Venezuelan Navy]], where she became ''Amazonas'' (T-21).
 
==Construction and commissioning==
''Vernon County'' was designed under project [[Ship Characteristics Board|SCB 9A]] and laid down as USS ''LST-1161'' on 14 April 1952 at [[Pascagoula, Mississippi]], by [[Ingalls Shipbuilding Corporation]] and launched on 25 November 1952;, sponsored by Mrs. Hugh White, the wife of the then-[[Governor (United States)|governor]] of Mississippi, [[Hugh L. White]]. USS ''LST-1161'' was [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 18 May 1953 with [[Lieutenant Commander]] D. E. Sutherlin in command.
 
==Atlantic, Caribbean, and Mediterranean operations, 1953–1958==
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''Vernon County'' subsequently returned to South Vietnamese waters, lifting cargo to Vũng Tàu and offloading it while at anchor on 14 August 1968. On 15 August 1968, she proceeded to [[Nha Be]], where she relieved {{USS|Windham County|LST-1170|6}} as support LST for Mobile Riverine Assault Force Bravo. For the next two months, she operated primarily in the Nha Be region but also at the junction of the [[Soirap River]] and [[Vam Co River]]. Midway through that period, the base was shifted to Dong Tam, where ''Vernon County'' remained until relieved by {{USS|Caroline County|LST-525|6}} on 16 October 1968.
 
Sailing to Kaohsiung, Taiwan, with a cargo of [[jeep]]s, and encountering [[TyphoonTropical Storm Hester (1968)|Tropical Storm Hester]] en route, ''Vernon County'' visited Hong Kong for rest and recreation before returning to Yokosuka in late October 1968. She remained at Yokosuka for the rest of the year.
 
===Riverine operations, 1969===
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On 23 February 1969, PAVN/VC automatic weapons fire came in the direction of ''Vernon County'', most rounds concentrated on one of the pontoons alongside or at the [[Bridge (ship)|bridge]]. On 25 February 1969, lookouts spotted a swimmer {{convert|50|yd|m|abbr=off|sp=us}} from the [[stern]]; grenades from [[M79 grenade launcher]]s were soon directed at him, thoroughly saturating the area. A body was sighted soon thereafter, the grenades apparently having done their work.
 
On 26 February 1969, ''Vernon County'' came in for further attention from VC sappers. A deck sentry sighted a dark object floating in the water near the [[fantail (ship)|fantail]] and fired two [[M16 rifle]] rounds, quickly resulting in a violent thrashing about in the water below. Shortly thereafter, the target, probably a sapper, sank.
 
Closely related to ''Vernon County''{{'}}s activities was a [[recoilless rifle]] attack on the Philippine tug ''Kangaroo'', {{convert|500|yd|m|abbr=off|sp=us}} downriver from ''Vernon County''. ''Kangaroo'' sustained serious damage, and fires broke out on board; ''Vernon County''{{'}}s rescue and assistance team boarded the crippled tug and promptly extinguished the fires, performing temporary repairs on ''Kangaroo''{{'}}s damaged superstructure as well. The action on the part of Vernon County, described as "quick and professional",<ref name="history.navy.mil"/> resulted in 27 [[Letter of commendation|letters of commendation]] and a [[Bronze Star]] for the ship's sailors who participated in the salvage operation.
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''Vernon County'' ultimately reached Diego Garcia shortly after 17:00 hours on 9 March 1971 and, on 10 March 1971, began underwater [[reconnaissance]] and [[beach]] surveys. On 11 March 1971, the first formal construction of a United States Navy communication station on Diego Garcia began, which was to forge another link in the globe-girdling system of transmitting and receiving stations. On 12 March 1971, ''Vernon County'' became the first LST in history to beach on largely unexplored Diego Garcia, offloading much of her heavy equipment to prepare a staging site for the reception of the many tons of supplies and equipment needed to build the station.
 
As the days passed, the [[atoll]] began to change; the ship rode higher in the water as equipment was unloaded. Temperatures on deck averaged 122 degrees [[Fahrenheit]] (50 degrees [[Celsius]]) between 10:00 and 15:00 hours each day; "[[tropical]]" duty hours of 0400 to 1400 soon commenced aboard the ship. The men of [[Underwater Demolition Team]] 12 and a [[platoon]] of [[Seabee (US Navy)|Seabees]] removed underwater obstacles, installed [[buoy]]s, marked [[Anchorage (maritime)|anchorage]]s, cleared land, set up a [[tent]] city, and began laying down an airfield. By the time [[dock landing ship]] {{USS|Monticello|LSD-35}} and [[amphibious cargo ship]] {{USS|Charleston|LKA-113}} arrived, the base camp was fully ready, as was a [[harbor]]. Later, having established a self-sustaining shore party, ''Vernon County'' made two additional voyages to and from Diego Garcia, picking up more men and supplies at Singapore, [[Cocos Island]], and [[Mauritius]].
 
During the last few days of her deployment to Diego Garcia, ''Vernon County'' was repainted her standard haze gray, a sure sign that the time had come for the ship to sail away from the atoll upon which she had established a base camp and the beginnings of a communication station.
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==References==
*{{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/v/vernon-county.html|https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/l/lst-1161.html}}
*[http://www.navsource.org/archives/10/16/161161.htm NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive USS Vernon County (LST-1161) ex USS LST-1161 (1953–1955)]
 
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[[Category:Vietnam War amphibious warfare vessels of the United States]]
[[Category:Ships built in Pascagoula, Mississippi]]
[[Category:United States Navy Missouri-related ships]]
[[Category:United States Navy Wisconsin-related ships]]
[[Category:United States Navy Louisiana-related ships]]
[[Category:Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela]]
[[Category:1952 ships]]