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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

LSM-20

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 (1) - World War II Victory Medal - Philippines Liberation Medal (1)
Individual Awards

Purple Heart, (5 KIA, 9 wounded -5 December 1944) / Combat Action Ribbon (retroactive to crew members attached 5 December 1944, Surigao Strait)
LSM-1 Class Landing Ship Medium:
  • Laid down (date unknown) at Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston TX.
  • Launched (date unknown)
  • Commissioned USS LSM-20, 17 June 1944, Ens. John R. Bradley, USN in command
  • During World War II LSM-20 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater and participated in the:
  • Final Disposition, sunk, 5 December 1944, after being hit by a Japanese Kamikaze plane in Surigao Strait, P.I.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 20 January 1945
  • LSM-20 earned one battle star for World War II service and one battle star for the Philippines liberation campaign
    Specifications:
    Displacement 520 t.(light), 743 t.(landing) 1,095 t.(fully loaded)
    Length 203' 6" (ovl)
    Beam 34' 6"
    Draft light, 3' 6" forward, 7' 8" aft, fully loaded, 6' 4" forward, 8' 3" aft
    Speed 13.2 kts. (max.), (928 tons displacement)
    Complement 5 officers, 54 enlisted
    Armament one single bow mounted 40mm gun, four single 20mm gun mounts
    Vehicle/Boat Capacity 5 medium or 3 heavy tanks, or 6 LVT's, or 9 DUKW's
    Troop Capacity 2 officers, 46 enlisted
    Armor 10-lb. STS splinter shield to gun mounts, pilot house and conning station
    Propulsion two Fairbanks Morse (model 38D81/8X10, reversible with hydraulic clutch) diesels. Direct drive with 1,440 BHP each @ 720rpm, twin screws, Endurance, 4,900 miles @ 12kts.(928 tons displacement)
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    LSM-20 48k LSM-20 approaching a beachhead, date and place unknown. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 50k LSM-20 beached, date and place unknown. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 37k LSM-20 down at the stern after being hit by a bomb laden Japanese Kamikaze. The plane struck the ship just aft of the conning tower about 3 feet above the waterline. The bombs exploded in the engine room causing fire and flooding. LSM-20 would sink in 20 minutes with the loss of eight enlisted men and the wounding of two officers and seven enlisted men. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 64k LSM-20's stern is awash and water is flooding the well deck after the Kamikaze attack at Surigao Strait, 5 December 1944. LCI(G)-1017 is off her port side attempting to rescue LSM-20 crewmembers. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 72k LSM-20 sinking stern first after the Kamikaze attack at Surigao Strait, 5 December 1944. Several crew members are still aboard, one can be seen on the port side and another on the starboard side clinging to the life lines. LCI(G)-1017 is visible off LSM-20 port side as she stands by to rescue the LSMs' crew. Photo was taken from a second LCI laying off her starboard side. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 59k LSM-20 standing on her stern as she sinks from the Kamikaze attack at Surigao Strait, 5 December 1944. Note that the crewman on the port side in the above photo has jumped and is under the water just a few feet from were he was standing, while the crewmen who was on the starboard side can be seen in the water. Note the helmet falling from the 40mm gun director tub.LCI(G)-1017 is still off LSM-20's port side. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 58k LSM-20 standing on her stern as she sinks from the Kamikaze attack at Surigao Strait, 5 December 1944. Note there are still crewmen in the water as LCI(G)-1017 and a second LCI continue to standby attempting to rescue remaining crewmembers in the water. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 54k LSM-20 standing on her stern as she sinks from the Kamikaze attack at Surigao Strait, 5 December 1944. Note she is almost totally submerged while rescue attempts continue from the LCIs alongside. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 56k LSM-20 standing on her stern as she sinks from the Kamikaze attack at Surigao Strait, 5 December 1944. Note at least ten men are visible in the water in this photo, three off the starboard side and seven off her port side as rescue attempts continue by the LCIs. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-20 46k LSM-20 almost totally submerged. Only her bow doors are above water after sinking from the Kamikaze attack at Surigao Strait, 5 December 1944. LCI(G)-1017 is visible in the distance. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    The DANFS history extract for LSM-91 is from LSM-LSMR Amphibious Forces, Vol. II. Paducah, Kentucky: Turner Publishing Company, © 1997. (ISBN 1-56311-389-9).
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S.Navy Memorial Foundation
    Fleet Reserve Association
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    LSM Homeport
    USS LSM / LSMR Association
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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