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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LST-269

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Papa - Charlie - Victor
NPCV

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 (4) - World War II Victory Medal
Bottom Row - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp) - Philippines Presidential Unit Citation - Philippine Liberation Medal (2)
Personal Awards

Purple Hearts (2 KIA, 21 October 1944)

LST-1 Class Tank Landing Ship

Laid down, 28 December 1942, at American Bridge Co., Ambridge, PA.

Launched, 4 July 1943

Commissioned USS LST-269, 27 August 1943, LT. V. T. Finch, USNR, in command

During World War II USS LST-269 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
LST Flotilla Five, CAPT. G.B. Carter, USN;
LST Group Fifteen, CDR. V. K. Busck, USN;
LST Division Seventy-Nine and
LST Flotilla Three, CDR. A.A. Ageton, USN (23);
LST Group Eight;
LST Division Fifteen and participated in the following campaigns:

Campaign and Dates	Campaign and Dates
Asiatic-Pacific Campaigns
Hollandia operation, 21 to 28 April 1944	Leyte operation Leyte landings, 20-21 October 1944
Marianas operation Capture and occupation of Saipan, 15 June to 28 July 1944	Manila Bay-Bicol operations Nasugbu, 31 January 1945

Following World War II USS LST-269 was assigned to Occupation service in the Far East for the following periods:

Navy Occupation Service Medal
25 October to 8 December 1945
30 December 1945 to 7 February 1946

Decommissioned, 7 February 1946 and assigned to Commander Naval Forces Far East (COMNAVFE) Shipping Control Authority for Japan (SCAJAP) redesignated Q047

Struck from the Naval Register, 23 December 1947

Transferred to the Maritime Administration, 28 May 1948

USS LST-269 earned four battle stars for World War II service

Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 28 May 1948, to Bethlehem Steel Co., Bethlehem, PA.

Specifications:

Displacement

1,625 t.(lt)

4,080 t.(fl) (sea-going draft w/1675 ton load)

2,366 t. (beaching displacement)

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)

limiting 11' 2"

maximum navigation 14' 1"

Speed 11.6 kts. (trial)

Endurance 24,000 miles @ 9kts. while displacing 3960 tons

Complement

13 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

2 - Twin 40MM gun mounts w/Mk. 51 directors

4 - Single 40MM gun mounts

12 single 20MM gun mounts

Fuel Capacity

Diesel 4,300 Bbls

Propulsion

two General Motors 12-567A, 900hp Diesel engines

single Falk Main Reduction Gears

three Diesel-drive 100Kw 230V D.C. Ship's Service Generators

two propellers, 1,700shp

twin rudders

Click On Image For Full Size Image	Size	Image Description		Source
1016048607	10,728k	From right to left; USS LST-269, USS LST-486, USS LST-270, USS LST-704 and USS LST-117 and three unidentified LSTs (all of LST Flotilla Three) spread along (from the left) Orange Two, Orange One, Blue Two, Blue One beaches of the initial landings on Leyte Island, Philippines. The date is 21 October 1944 between 0914 and 1051 hours. Within the next few hours the Japanese would rain down mortar and artillery fire onto these beaches.hitting LST-486 on main deck between frames 14 and 15, no casualties; LST-269 received two direct mortar hits killing two and wounding three; LST-704 received seven direct hits by mortar and artillery causing much damage and killing two, and wounding twenty-three with two dying later. Ref. LST-704 War Diary and COMLSTFLOT3 War Diary, U.S. Army Signal Corps Photo 254880 now in the collections of the US National Archives, Local ID 111-SCA-2857. National Archives ID 80662621.		David Upton

USS LST-269
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)

Commanding Officers
	LT. Helm, Frank C., USNR (Ferry Command)	August 1943 - 27 August 1943
01	LT. Finch, Vergen T., USNR	27 August 1943 - 10 September 1944
02	LT. Wilkes, Johnnie Jackson, USN	10 September 1944 - March 1945
03	LT. Rutherford, Donald G., USNR	March 1945 - May 1945
04	LT. Dunn, Theodore C., USNR	May 1945 - 7 February 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
History of LST Flotilla Seven
LST Flotilla Five War Diary May 1944
LST Flotilla Five War Diary July 1944
The USS LST Ship Memorial
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

Last Updated 9 June 2023