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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

HM LST-324

LST-324 was transferred to the United Kingdom for the duration of World War II

LST-1 Class Tank Landing Ship:

Laid down, 10 August 1942, at Philadelphia Navy Yard, Philadelphia, PA.

Launched, 5 November 1942

LST-324 never saw active service with the United States Navy

Transferred to the United Kingdom under terms of the Lend-Lease Act

Royal Navy History
Commissioned into the Royal Navy as HM LST-324, 23 January 1943
HM LST-324 sailed from New York in company with HM LST-412 and HM LST-421, 13 March 1943 transporting refinery equipment to Curacao
From Georgetown, Curacao HM LST-324 set sail for Freetown, Sierra Leone
HM LST-324 participated in the following campaigns:
Sicilian occupation
Salerno landings
West Coast of Italy operations-1944 - Anzio-Nettuno advanced landings
Invasion of Normandy
Operated in the shuttle service between Tilbury, Ostend and Antwerp
Assisted in the liberation of the Channel islands
HM LST-324 was reassigned to the Pacific Theater and participated in the Invasion of Malaya.
Paid off and returned to the US Navy at Subic Bay, Philippines, 4 May 1946

Struck from the Naval Register, 3 July 1946

Final Disposition, sold, 13 February 1948, to Bosey, Philippines, fate unknown

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
	14k	HM LST-324 heads for the Anzio beachhead, January 1944. Note the barrage balloon which was often flown from LST's to discourage strafing attacks by low-flying planes. Also of note is the British surface-search radar above *LST-324*'s wheelhouse	US Navy DANFS
	77k	HM LST-361 and HM LST-324 loading vehicles and equipment at Gosport, England, preparing for the upcoming Invasion of Normandy. Imperial War Museum War Office Second World War Official Collection, by Knight (Capt), Photo No. © IWM (H 38976).	Mike Green
US National Archives photo # 80-G-46817	370k	LSTs land invasion supplies on "Utah" Beach, shortly after the 6 June 1944 "D-Day" assault. LSTs on the beach include from (right to left): USS LST-312 HM LST-320 HM LST-321 USS LST-72 USS LST-51? last digit not visible) HM LST-324 USS LST-311 USS LST-49 USS LST-373 USS LST-47 and two unidentified LSTs. Note: bow numbers of the British ships enclosed in colored blocks; crowd of shipping offshore; barrage balloons over many of the ships. Photo was released for publication, 23 October 1944 US National Archives photo # 80-G-46817 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives. Note: This image is labeled as Omaha Beach but is actually taken on Utah Beach. [See - The movie *"A Newsreel Camaraman's View if D-Day"* in color by Jack Lieb. About 15 minutes into the film Jack Lieb pans the beach one can see that this is Utah Beach showing LSTs 72, 324, 311, 46, 47 in the same sequence as in the NARA photo 80-G-46817.]	Riley R. Re Qua MoMM3/C USS LST-49 and Arthur L Long MoMM2/C USS LST-49 Marilyn Smith for her father Coastguardsman Jack Davenport USCGC Blackhaw (WLB-390)
US National Archives photo	180k
	61k	HM LST-324 sailing proudly up the Solent after returning from the Normandy beachhead sometime in June 1944. The dustbin aerial of her Type 217P radar unit can be seen just below the flags on her mast.	Robert Hurst
	68k	HM LST-324 unloading a cargo of timber from the United States at the West African port of Freetown, Sierra Leone. The timber was required for new docks and harbor works. Royal Navy photo # A 17840 from the collections of the Imperial War Museums.	Robert Hurst
	50k	HM LST-324 and HM LST-412 unloading logs at Freetown, Sierra Leone, date unknown.	Robert Hurst
	30k	HM LST-324 beached at Sandakan, 27 October 1945. North East Borneo Force while loading tools and medical supplies.	Australian War Memorial

LST-324
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)

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Last Updated 3 March 2023