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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USNS Aiken Victory (T-AP-188)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Delta - Yankee - November
 NDYN
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - National Defense Service Medal
Third Row - Korean Service Medal (8) - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal (retroactive)
  • Launched, 30 November 1944
  • Delivered to the Maritime Commission, 30 December 1944, at Baltimore, MD.
  • Operated by Mississippi Shipping, under a contract with the Maritime Commission
  • Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, Benecia, CA., 21 July 1950
  • Acquired by the US Navy, 21 July 1950, and placed in service by the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) as USNS Aiken Victory (T-AP-188)
  • During the Korean War USNS Aiken Victory participated in the following campaigns:

    Korean War Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    North Korean Aggression
    16 to 29 October 1950     		Communist China Spring Offensive
    15 to 16 June1951
    Communist China Aggression
    5 to 10 November 1950     		UN Summer-Fall Offensive
    12 to 13 August 1951
    22 to 23 September 1951
    13 to 14 November 1951
    Inchon Landing
    13 to 15 September 1950     		Second Korean Winter
    29 to 30 April 1952
    First UN Counter Offensive
    4 to 5 April 1951
    13 April 1951     		Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952
    6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30 May 1952
    1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, June 1952
    9 to 10, 12, 14, 21 to 22, 25 September 1952

  • Placed out of service in late 1952
  • Returned to the Maritime Commission, 19 December 1952, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Olympia, WA.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 12 February 1953
  • USNS Aiken Victory earned eight battle stars for Korean War service
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 10 August 1971, to American Ship Dismantlers, Inc., Portland, OR. (PD-X-914, of 9 July 1971) for $47,410.00. Withdrawn from the Olympia Reserve Fleet, and delivered to American Ship Dismantlers, Inc., 26 August 1971
    Specifications
    Displacement 4,480 t.(lt) 10,680 t.(fl)
    Length 455' 3"
    Beam 62'
    Draft 29' 6"
    Speed 15.5 kts.
    Armament none
    Cargo Capacity unknown
    Largest Boom Capacity 50 t.
    Complement unknown
    Troop Capacity unknown
    Fuel Capacity NSFO 18,575 Bbls
    Propulsion
    one Westinghouse cross compound steam turbine
    two Babcock and Wilcox header-type boilers 525psi 750°
    two turbo-drive 300Kw 120V/240V D.C. Ship's Service Generators
    single propeller, 8,500shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    SS Aiken Victory
    Aiken Victory 121k SS Aiken Victory arriving at Boston with 1,958 troops from Europe, 26 July 1945.
    Box 15, File 226, Negative #5752, Record Group 357, National Archives and Records Administration-College Park, MD.    		 Robert Hurst
    Aiken Victory 264k Stern view of SS Aiken Victory moored pierside, probably in a European port ready to embark returning GIs, January 1946 CAPT. Charles H. Foertmeyer MD, 305th Medical Battalion, 80th Infantry Division, 3rd Army
    Aiken Victory 116k SS Aiken Victory returning troops from Europe, January 1946. CAPT. Charles H. Foertmeyer MD, 305th Medical Battalion, 80th Infantry Division, 3rd Army
    Aiken Victory 57k SS Aiken Victory arriving at San Francisco, CA., circa 1947-48, returning US troops from the Far East. Aiken Victory was operated by Mississippi Shipping, under a contact awarded by the War Shipping Administration (WSA). Photo by Pictorial Studios, San Francisco, CA. Jim Woodworth
    Aiken Victory 126k GIs lounge on the main deck of SS Aiken Victory while she was employed in transporting US military personnel from the Far East back to the US after World War II., circa 1947-48 Photo by Edwin S. Woodworth, submitted by his son Jim Woodworth
    Aiken Victory 73k GIs taking part in a lifeboat drill aboard SS Aiken Victory while she was transporting US military personnel from the Far East back to the US after World War II., circa 1947-48. Photo by Edwin S. Woodworth, submitted by his son Jim Woodworth
    USNS Aiken Victory (T-AP-188)
    Aiken Victory 46k A crane lifts a 3 ton 6x6 truck onto USNS Aiken Victory (T-AP-188), 26 September 1950 at Kure, Japan. The ship is transporting members of the 3rd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment (3RAR) and equipment to Pusan, Korea.
    Australian War Memorial, Photo No. P01813.570    		 Mike Green
    Aiken Victory 196k USNS Aiken Victory (T-AP-188), 27 September 1950, shortly before departure from Kure, Japan. The ship is transporting members of the 3rd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment (3RAR) to Pusan, Korea.
    Australian War Memorial, Photo No. P01813.574    		 Mike Green
    Aiken Victory 99k Members of the 3rd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment (3RAR) disembark from the USNS Aiken Victory (T-AP-188) at Pusan, Korea, 28 September 1950.
    Australian War Memorial, Photo No. P01813.583    		 Mike Green
    USNS Aiken Victory (T-AP-188)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    MARAD Vessel History Database
    "The SHAKIEN SHACK Nov11 No7 21-28 May 1946 La Havre to New York"
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 13 January 2023