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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

LST-63


LST-63 transferred to the Royal Navy for the duration of World War II
LST-1 Class Tank Landing Ship
  • Laid down, 6 August 1942, at the Jeffersonville Boat and Machinery Co., Jeffersonville, IN.
  • Launched, 19 December 1942
  • Transferred to the United Kingdom, 15 March 1943
  • Royal Navy History
  • Commissioned into the Royal Navy as HM LST-63, 29 March 1943
  • Sailed from Halifax, Nova Scotia, 18 May 1943 in convoy SC 131 carrying general cargo
  • Arrived Liverpool, 31 May 1943, with HM LST-64, HM LST-164, HM LST-198 and HM LST-200
  • Sailed from the Clyde, 25 June 1943, as part of convoy KMS 19 for the invasion of Sicily
  • During World War II HM LST-63 was assigned to the European Theater and participated in the following campaigns:
  • Sicilian Occupation, July and August 1943
  • Salerno landings, September 1943
  • Anzio advanced landings, January to March 1944
  • Invasion of Normandy, June 1944
  • Paid off at New York 17 December 1945
  • Returned to US Naval custody, 17 December 1945
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 21 January 1946
  • Final Disposition, sold for conversion to merchant service, 27 May 1948, to Northern Metals Co., Philadelphia, PA., fate unknown
    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 4 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
    1 - 12 Pounder anti-aircraft multi-barrel mount
    6 - 20MM mounts
    4 - Fast Aerial Mine (FAM) mounts
    Propulsion two General Motors 12-567, 900hp diesel engines, two shafts, twin rudders
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    DANFS history entry located at the US Naval Historical Center web site
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
    Fleet Reserve Association
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    LST Home Port
    State LST Chapters
    United States LST Association
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    This page is created by David W. Almond and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    © 2005 Gary P. Priolo © 1996 - 2008 NavSource Naval History. All Rights Reserved.
    Last Updated 25 August 2006