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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LST-653


International Radio Call Sign:
November - Foxtrot - India - Tango
 NFIT
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 Medal (with Asia clasp)

USS LST-653 was transferred to the Republic of South Korea
LST-542 Class Tank Landing Ship:
  • Laid down, 17 November 1943, at American Bridge Co., Ambridge, PA.
  • Launched, 23 January 1944
  • Commissioned USS LST-653, 1 April 1944, LTjg. Herbert C. Beasley, Jr., USNR, in command
  • During World War II LST-653 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
    LST Flotilla Thirty-Seven, CAPT. Riley;
     LST Group One Hundred Eleven LCDR. A. H. Tutt;
     LST Division Two Hundred Twenty-One
  • Following World War II USS LST-653 was assigned to Occupation service in the Far East for the following periods:

    Navy Occupation Service Medal
    2 September to 18 November 1945
    23 December 1945 to 3 February 1946

  • Decommissioned, 3 February 1946 and assigned to Commander Naval Forces Far East (COMNAVFE) Shipping Control Authority for Japan (SCAJAP), redesignated Q039
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 5 March 1947
  • Sold to the government of South Korea, 31 May 1947
  • Final Disposition, fate unknown
    Specifications:
    Displacement
    1,625 t.(lt)
    4,080 t.(fl) (sea-going draft w/1675 ton load)
    2,366 t. (beaching displacement)
    Length 328' o.a.
    Beam 50'
    Draft
    light 2' 4" fwd, 7' 6" aft
    sea-going 8' 3" fwd, 14' 1" aft
    landing 3' 11" fwd, 9' 10" aft (landing w/500 ton load)
    limiting 11' 2"
    maximum navigation 14' 1"
    Speed 11.6 kts. (trial)
    Endurance 24,000 miles @ 9kts. while displacing 3960 tons
    Complement
    13 officers
    104 enlisted
    Troop Accommodations
    16 officers
    147 enlisted
    Boats 2 LCVP
    Cargo Capacity (varied with mission - payloads between 1600 and 1900 tons)
    Typical loads
    One Landing Craft Tank (LCT), tanks, wheeled and tracked vehicles, artillery, construction equipment and military supplies. A ramp or elevator forward allowed vehicles access to tank deck from main deck
    Additional capacity included sectional pontoons carried on each side of vessel amidships, to either build Rhino Barges or use as causeways. Married to the bow ramp, the causeways would enabled payloads to be delivered ashore from deeper water or where a beachhead would not allow the vessel to be grounded forward after ballasting
    Armament (varied with availability when each vessel was outfitted. Retro-fitting was accomplished throughout WWII. The ultimate armament design for United States vessels was
    2 - Twin 40MM gun mounts w/Mk. 51 directors
    4 - Single 40MM gun mounts
    12 single 20MM gun mounts
    Fuel Capacity
    Diesel 4,300 Bbls
    Propulsion
    two General Motors 12-567A, 900hp Diesel engines
    single Falk Main Reduction Gears
    three Diesel-drive 100Kw 230V D.C. Ship's Service Generators
    two propellers, 1,700shp
    twin rudders
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    USS LST-653
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LTjg. Beasley Jr., Herbert C., USNR1 April 1944 - November 1945
    02LTjg. Low, William H., USNRNovember 1945 - 3 February 1946
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    The USS LST Ship Memorial
    LST Home Port
    State LST Chapters
    United States LST Association
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Amphibious Ship Type Index Back To The Tank Landing Ship (LST) Photo Index
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    This page is created by David W. Almond and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 9 January 2015