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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LCI(M)-359
ex
USS LCI(L)-359 (1943 - 1945)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Hotel - Yankee - Charlie
NHYC

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Campaign Medal - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (5)
Bottom Row - World War II Victory Medal - Philippine Presidential Unit Citation - Philippines Liberation Medal (2)

LCI(L)-351 Class Landing Craft Infantry (Large):

Laid down, 25 May 1943, at George Lawley & Sons, Neponset, MA.

Launched, 21 June 1943

Commissioned USS LCI(L)-359, 2 July 1943

Reclassified Landing Craft Infantry (Mortar) LCI(M)-359, 30 April 1945

During World War II USS LCI(L)-359 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
LCI Flotilla Five; and
LCI Flotilla Twenty Two (1944-45), CDR. Paul McD. Smith USN (1944) and CDR. Marion M. Byrd (1944-45) and participated in the following campaigns:

Campaign and Dates	Campaign and Dates
Asiatic-Pacific Campaigns
Bismarck Archipelago operation, 21 to 25 April 1944 Green Islands landing, 15 to 19 February 1944	Consolidation of the Southern Philippines; Palawan Island landings, 28 February to 7 March 1945 Visayan Island landings, 18 to 19 March 1945
Western New Guinea operations; Morotai landings, 15 September1944	Manila Bay-Bicol operations; Nasugbu, 31 January to 2 February 1945
Luzon operation; Lingayen Gulf landing, 4 to 18 January 1945

Decommissioned in 1946

Struck from the Naval Register, 25 February 1946

USS LCI(L)-359 / LCI(M)-359 earned five battle stars for service in WWII

Final Disposition, sold 13 March 1947, fate unknown

Specifications:
Displacement 236 t.(light), 264 t.(landing), 419 t.(loaded)
Length 158' 5½"
Beam 23' 3"

Draft

Light, 3'1½" mean

Landing, 2' 8" forward, 4' 10" aft

Loaded, 5' 4" forward, 5' 11" aft

Speed

16 kts (max.)

14 kts maximum continuous

LCI(L) Complement

4 Officers

24 Enlisted

LCI(M) Complement

4 Officers

49 Enlisted

LCI(L) Troop Capacity

6 Officers

182 Enlisted

LCI(L) Cargo Capacity 75 tons

Armor 2" plastic splinter protection on gun turrets, conning tower and pilot house

Endurance 4,000 miles at 12 kts, loaded, 500 miles at 15 kts; and 110 tons of fuel

LCI(L) Armament

five single 20mm gun mounts, one bow mounted, one each port and starboard forward of wheelhouse, one each port and starboard aft of wheelhouse

on some LCIs two .50 cal machine guns were added

LCI(M) Armament

one single 40mm gun mount, forward

four 20mm gun mounts

three 4.2" chemical mortars mounted in three 4ft x 4ft wooden walled 2" x 6" high sand boxes on the well deck with the three tripod mortar tubes in position to fire forward over the bow, No. 2 Troop Compartment (under well deck) converted to a magazine

Fuel Capacity

Diesel 860 Bbls

lube oil 200 gal

Propulsion

two sets of 4 General Motors 6051 series 71 Diesel engines, 4 per shaft

single General Motors Main reduction gears

two Diesel-drive 30Kw 120V D.C. Ship's Service Generators

twin variable pitch propellers, 2,320shp