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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LST-1043


International Radio Call Sign:
November - Alpha - Alpha - Lima
 NAAL
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)
LST-542 Class Tank Landing Ship:
  • Laid down, 17 December 1944 at Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh, PA.
  • Launched, 27 January 1945
  • Commissioned USS LST-1043, 24 February 1945. LT. Clifford Off, Jr. USNR in command
  • During World War II USS LST-1043 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater;
    LST Flotilla Thirty-Three, CAPT. C. A. Legg USN (24);
     LST Group Ninety-Seven, CDR. H. B. McLean;
     LST Division One Hundred Ninety-Four

  • Following World War II USS LST-1043 was assigned to Occupation service in the Far East from 11 to 20 September 1945
  • Decommissioned, 22 July 1946
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 28 August 1946
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 10 December 1947, to the Learner Co., Oakland, CA.
    Specifications: (as reported by Office of Naval Intelligence-1945)
    Displacement 1,625 t.(lt), 4,080 t.(fl) (sea-going draft w/1675 ton load)
    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)
    Speed 12 kts. (maximum)
    Endurance 24,000 miles @ 9kts. while displacing 3960 tons
    Complement
    7 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
    two twin 40MM gun mounts w/Mk. 51 directors
    four single 40MM gun mounts
    twelve single 20MM gun mounts
    Propulsion two General Motors 12-567, 900hp Diesel engines
    two propellers
    twin rudders
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    LST-1043 118k Side launch of LST-1043, 27 January 1945, at Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh, PA. Greg Tatum for his father Leonard S. Tatum PhM 1/c USS LST-1043
    LST-1043 102k USS LST-1043 commissioning crew photo, circa 27 January 1945, at Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh, PA. Greg Tatum for his father Leonard S. Tatum PhM 1/c USS LST-1043
    LST-1043
    1016104303    		 523k USS LST-1043 probably underway in San Francisco Bay following completion of duty in the Far East, circa 1946.
    		Darryl Baker
    USS LST-1043
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LT. Off Jr., Clifford, USNR24 February 1945 - 15 November 1945
    02LTjg. Bergner, Hans Erich, USNR15 November 1945 1 February 1946
    03LTjg. Rising, Vernon K., USNR1 February 1946 - 22 July 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
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 15 November 2024