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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LST-631


International Radio Call Sign:
November - Foxtrot - Hotel - Alpha
 NFHA
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 (3) - World War II Victory Medal
Bottom Row - Navy Occupation Medal (with Asia clasp) - Philippines Presidential Unit Citation - Philippine Liberation Medal (2)
LST-542 Class Tank Landing Ship:
  • Laid down, 19 April 1944, at Chicago Bridge and Iron Co., Seneca, IL.
  • Launched, 18 July 1944
  • Commissioned USS LST-631, 8 August 1944, LTjg. John W. Dunn USNR in command
  • During World War II USS LST-631 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater and participated in the following campaigns:

    Asiatic-Pacific Campaigns
    Campaigns and Dates Campaigns and Dates
    Luzon operation
    Lingayen Gulf landings, 4 to 13 January 1945     		Consolidation of the Southern Philippine Islands
    Mindanao Island landings, 10 to 12 March and 17 to 23 April 1945
    Manila Bay - Bicol operation
    Zambales - Subic Bay, 29 to 30 January 1945     		 

  • Following World War II USS LST-631 was assigned to Occupation service in the Far East for the following periods:

    Navy Occupation Service Medal
    23 September to 15 October 1945
    10 to 20 December 1945

  • Decommissioned, 25 May 1946
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 3 July 1946
  • USS LST-631 earned three battle stars for World War II service
  • Custody transferred to the Maritime Commission, 15 April 1948
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 15 April 1948, to Kaiser Co., Inc., Seattle, WA.
    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
    LST-454 61k USS LST-631 along with USS LST-454 and numerous other LSTs beached at Blue Beach Morotai, New Guinea, 22 June 1945, while embarking Australian troops of 7 Division and their equipment for "Operation Oboe 2", at Balikpapan, Borneo Australian War Memorial
    LST-631 18k USS LST-631 dinner dance menu, 13 February 1946, San Francisco. Ron Reeves
    USS LST-631
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LTjg. Dunn, John W., USNR8 August 1944 - 2 December 1945
    02LTjg. Hansen, William J., USNR2 December 1945 - March 1946
    03LTjg. Christensen, Robert W., USNRMarch 1946 - 25 May 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
    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 by David W. Almond and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 24 March 2017