USS Earheart

USS Earheart (APD-113), ex-DE-603, was a United States Navy high-speed transport in commission from 1945 to 1946.

History
United States
Name	USS Earheart (DE-603)
Namesake	James E. Earheart, Jr.
Builder	Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc., Hingham, Massachusetts
Laid down	20 March 1945
Reclassified	APD-113, while under construction
Launched	12 May 1945
Sponsored by	Mrs. James Earheart
Commissioned	26 July 1945
Decommissioned	29 April 1946
Stricken	12 December 1963
Fate	Transferred to Mexican Navy, 12 December 1963
Mexico
Name	ARM Papaloapan (H04)
Namesake	Papaloapan River
Reclassified	B04
Fate	ran aground, 1976
Stricken	1976
General characteristics
Class and type	Rudderow-class destroyer escort, as ordered
Class and type	Crosley-class high speed transport, as completed
Displacement	2,130 long tons (2,164 t) full
Length	306 ft (93 m)
Beam	37 ft (11 m)
Draft	12 ft 7 in (3.84 m)
Speed	23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph)
Troops	162
Complement	204
Armament	1 × 5 in (130 mm) gun 6 × 40 mm guns 6 × 20 mm guns 2 × depth charge tracks

Namesake

James Edward Earheart Jr. was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on 25 April 1913 and was of German descent. He enlisted in the United States Marine Corps on 7 January 1942. During Operation Torch, the Allied amphibious landings in North Africa, on 8 November 1942, Private First Class Earheart was a member of a naval antisabotage party embarked in a British warship which was damaged during the entry into Oran, Algeria. Heroically, he volunteered, in the face of continuous Vichy French shelling, to swim to a harbor tug whose movements were endangering the men abandoning the warship. He was killed in this effort. Earheart was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for his actions at Oran.

Construction and commissioning

Earheart was laid down as the Rudderow-class destroyer escort USS Earheart (DE-603) on 20 March 1945 by Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc., at Hingham, Massachusetts. She was reclassified as a Crosley-class high-speed transport and redesignated APD-113 during construction, and was launched on 12 May 1945, sponsored by Mrs. James Earheart, mother of the ship's namesake, Private First Class James E. Earheart, Jr. Earheart was commissioned on 26 July 1945.

Service history

Earheart conducted shakedown training at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, during which World War II ended with the surrender of Japan on 15 August 1945. She then moved to Providence, Rhode Island, to celebrate Navy Day on 27 October 1945. Earheart then moved on to Green Cove Springs, Florida, for inactivation.

Decommissioning and disposal

Earheart was decommissioned at Green Cove Springs on 29 April 1946 and berthed there with the Florida Group of the Atlantic Reserve Fleet in the St. Johns River. She was stricken from the Navy List on 12 December 1963.

Mexican Navy service

Earheart was transferred to Mexico on 12 December 1963. In Mexican Navy service she was named ARM Papaloapan (H04) after the Papaloapan River. She was later assigned the new pennant number of B04. Papaloapan ran aground in 1976 and was discarded by the Mexican Navy and scrapped that year.

References

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive DE-603 / APD-113 Earheart