USS LST-347 was a LST-1-class tank landing ship in the United States Navy during World War II. She was later sold to France as Vire (L9003).[1]
 USS LST-347 on 6 June 1944
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | LST-347 |
| Builder | Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth |
| Laid down | 10 November 1942 |
| Launched | 7 February 1943 |
| Sponsored by | Mrs. J. M. Farrin |
| Commissioned | 7 February 1943 |
| Decommissioned | 19 December 1944 |
| Stricken | 28 April 1949 |
| Identification |
|
| Honors and awards | See Awards |
| Fate | Transferred to Royal Navy, 19 December 1944 |
| History | |
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | LST-347 |
| Commissioned | 19 December 1944 |
| Decommissioned | 23 January 1946 |
| Fate | Transferred to France, 23 January 1948 |
| History | |
 France | |
| Name | Vire |
| Namesake | Vire |
| Commissioned | 23 January 1948 |
| Decommissioned | January 1957 |
| Reclassified | L9003 |
| Identification | Pennant number: LST-347 |
| Fate | Scrapped, 1957 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | LST-1-class tank landing ship |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 328 ft (100 m) oa |
| Beam | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Draft |
|
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Range | 24,000 nmi (44,000 km; 28,000 mi) at 9 kn (17 km/h; 10 mph) while displacing 3,960 long tons (4,024 t) |
| Boats & landing craft carried | 2 or 6 x LCVPs |
| Capacity |
|
| Troops | 16 officers, 147 enlisted men |
| Complement | 13 officers, 104 enlisted men |
| Armament |
|
Construction and career
editLST-347 was laid down on 10 November 1942 at Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia. Launched on 7 February 1943 and commissioned on 7 February 1943.[2]
Service in the United States
editDuring World War II, LST-347 was assigned to the Europe-Africa-Middle East theater. She took part in the Invasion of Sicilian from 9 to 15 July 1943 and the Salerno landings from 9 to 21 September 1943.
She participated in the Invasion of Normandy from 6 to 25 June 1944.
LST-347 was decommissioned on 19 December 1944 and transferred to the Royal Navy.
She was struck from the Navy Register on 28 April 1949.[1]
Service in the United Kingdom
editHMS LST-347 was commissioned on 18 December 1944 and was part of W Task Force which participated in the recapture of Rangoon, before proceeding to the eventual invasion of Malaya at Morib and Port Swettenham, and to Singapore and Bangkok doing relief work repatriating ex P.O.W.s of the Japanese.
She was paid off at Singapore on 23 January 1946 and leased to France on 23 January 1948.
Service in France
editShe was transferred to the French Navy and commissioned on 23 January 1948 with the same name LST-347.[3]
In 1950, she was given the name Vire (LST-347).
Liamone took part in the First Indochina War between 19 December 1946 to 1 August 1954.
She was later redesignated as L9003 in the later years of her service in the 1950s.
The ship was out of service and sold for scrap in early 1957.
Awards
editLST-347 have earned the following awards:
Citations
edit- ^ a b "Tank Landing Ship LST". www.navsource.org. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
- ^ "LST-347". NHHC. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
- ^ "LST Vire". lst.france.free.fr. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
Sources
edit- United States. Dept. of the Treasury (1962). Treasury Decisions Under the Customs, Internal Revenue, Industrial Alcohol, Narcotic and Other Laws, Volume 97. U.S. Government Printing Office.
- Moore, Capt. John (1984). Jane's Fighting Ships 1984-85. Jane's Information Group. ISBN 978-0710607959.
- Saunders, Stephen (2009). Jane's Fighting Ships 2009-2010. Jane's Information Group. ISBN 978-0710628886.
- Fairplay International Shipping Journal Volume 222. United Kingdom: Fairplay Publishing Limited. 1967.