Please report any broken links or trouble you might come across to the Webmaster. Please take a moment to let us know so that we can correct any problems and make your visit as enjoyable and as informative as possible.

NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LST-563


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

Precedence of awards is from left to right
American Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal
LST-542 Class Tank Landing Ship:
  • Laid down, 4 March 1944, at Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Co., Evansville, IN.
  • Launched, 1 May 1944
  • Commissioned USS LST-563, 20 May 1944, LT. John B. Hockswender, USNR, in command
  • During World War II LST-563 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater
  • Grounded on Clipperton Island in the eastern Pacific, 670 miles southwest of Mexico, 21 December 1944
  • Final Disposition, stripped and abandoned, 9 February 1945
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 23 February 1945
    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 Contributed
    By
    LST-563
    1016056306    		 88k USS LST 563 commissioning, 20 May 1944, at Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Co., Evansville, IN. The commanding officer, LT. John B. Hockswender, USNR, is the officer second from the right.
    Missouri Valley Bridge and Iron Co. photo from USS LST Ship Memorial, Inc. LST Shipyard Collection    		 Tommy Trampp
    LST-563
    1016056305    		 31k USS LST 563 underway, 16 July 1944, location unknown.
    US National Archives Photo 80-G-240701 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives
    Donateds by the son of Archie Dean Loftin.         		Tommy Trampp
    LST-563 31k USS LST 563 broached on Clipperton Island, 22 December 1944.
    US Navy photo from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center.         		Todd Cabral
    LST-563 21k USS LST 563 on the reef at Clipperton Island, December 1944. Photo taken from USS Argus (PY-14). Photo by Warren Cabral RDM/2c
    USS Argusvia Todd Cabral
    LST-563 31k USS LST 563 on the reef at Clipperton Island, December 1944. Photo taken from USS Argus (PY-14). Photo by Warren Cabral RDM/2c USS Argus via Todd Cabral
    LST-563 36k USS LST 563 on the reef at Clipperton Island, December 1944. Photo taken from USS Argus (PY-14). Photo by Warren Cabral RDM/2c USS Argus via Todd Cabral
    USS LST-563
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LT. Hockswender, John B., USNR20 May 1944 - 9 February 1945
    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
    The USS LST Ship Memorial
    LST Home Port
    State LST Chapters
    United States LST Association
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Amphibious Ship Type Index Back To The Tank Landing Ship (LST) Photo Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster.
    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 22 January 2021