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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USS Okala (ARST-2)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Alpha - Uniform - Hotel
 NAUH
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Campaign Medal
Bottom Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
Laysan Island Class Salvage Craft Tender
  • Laid down as LST-1099 at Jeffersonville Bridge and Machine Co., Jeffersonville, IN.
  • Redesignated Salvage Craft Tender ARST-2, 8 December 1944
  • Named Okala, 23 December 1944
  • Launched, 8 February 1945
  • Placed in reduced commission in mid June 1945, for transit down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers to Algiers, LA.
  • Fully commissioned, USS Okala (ARST-2), 28 June 1945 at Algiers, LA., LT. Louis Silver, USNR in command
  • During and after World War II USS Okala was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater
  • Decommissioned, 5 August 1946, at Seattle, WA.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 15 October 1946
  • Transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal
  • Final Disposition, sold by the Maritime Commission to Columbia River Packing Association, fate unknown
    Specifications:
    Displacement 4,100 t. (lim)
    Length 328'
    Beam 50'
    Draft 11' 2"
    Speed 11.6 kts
    Complement
    Officers 41
    Enlisted 248
    Largest Boom Capacity 25 t.
    Armament
    two quad 40mm AA gun mounts
    twelve single 20mm AA gun mounts
    Boats two LCVPs
    Fuel Capacities
    Diesel 6,830 Bbls
    Gasoline 17,850 Gals
    Propulsion
    two General Motors 12-567A Diesel engines
    single Falk Main Reduction Gears
    four Diesel-drive 100Kw 120V/240V D.C.
    twin rudders
    twin propellers, 1,800shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Source
    Okala
    09340209    		 164k Ms. Susie Saulsbury christens Okala (ARST-2) during the ship's launching ceremony, 8 February 1945, at Jeffersonville Bridge and Machine Co., Jeffersonville, IN. On the platform with her is Joseph E. Glass – Safety Manager, Jeffersonville Bridge and Machine Co.. Bill Glass
    Okala (ARST-2) running builders trials on the Ohio River, circa June 1945
    Contributed by Bill Glass
    Okala
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    09340207
    Okala 41k USS Okala (ARST-2) near Memphis, TN, 26 June 1945, during her delivery voyage down the Mississippi River system. Note that her mast has been folded down to clear bridges during this river trip. The ship is painted in what appears to be Measure 31 camouflage scheme.
    US Navy photo # NH 76090, courtesy of CAPT. C.W. Stoll, via Charles H. Bogart, 1972.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command  
    Okala
    19-N-89698    		 76k USS Okala (ARST-2) during her ferry voyage down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers from Jeffersonville, Indiana to New Orleans. She departed her builder's yard at Jeffersonville, 24 June 1945, passed Memphis, TN., 26 June, and arrived at New Orleans, 28 June. Note the larger crane stowed amidships. 19-N-86587A shows the 40mm quad AA gun mounting on the stern and the arrangement of boats aft.
    US National Archive photos # 19-N-89698 & 19-N-86587A. US Navy Bureau of Ships photos now in the collections of the US National Archives.    		 Robert Hurst
    Okala
    19-N-86587A    		 119k
    Okala 53k USS Okala (ARST-2) underway, circa mid-1945.
    US Navy photo # NH 84686, courtesy of Donald M. McPherson, 1972.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command/font>
    Okala 111k USS Okala (ARST-2) at anchor in Puget Sound in 1946 shortly before decommissioning at Seattle, WA. The supports of the large rotating crane amidships have been raised making the crane operational.
    US National Archive photos    		 Robert Hurst
    Okala 116k
    USS Okala (ARST-2)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LT. Silver, Louis, USNR28 June 1945 - 7 September 1945
    02ENS. Miller, Michael O., USNR7 September 1945 - 23 March 1946
    03LT. Stratton, Darrell Arthur, USN23 March 1946 - 5 August 1946
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 31 March 2023