USS Princeton (CV-37)

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Princeton around 1965
The Princeton in 1965
Overview
Keel laying September 14, 1943
Launch July 8, 1945
1. Period of service flag
Commissioning November 18, 1945
Decommissioning January 30, 1970
Whereabouts Wrecked in 1971
Technical specifications
displacement

27,100 tons

length

271 meters

width

28 meters

Draft

8.71 meters

crew

3,448 officers and sailors

drive

4 propellers, driven by 4 steam turbines; 150,000 hp

speed

33 knots

Armament

4 × 127 mm twin towers
2 4 × 127 mm single guns
2 8 × 40 mm quadruple flak
46 × 20 mm MK

The USS Princeton (CV / CVA / CVS-37 / LPH-5) was the Essex class belonging aircraft carriers of the US Navy , which was made in November 1945 in service. She had her main mission during the Korean War , in which she received a total of 8 Battle Stars . The ship also served during the Vietnam War . During her service, the Princeton was reclassified several times: in the early 1950s as an attack vehicle, then for anti-submarine defense and finally as an amphibious assault ship . In January 1970 the ship was put into reserve and was demolished the following year.

history

The Princeton was laid down in the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on September 14, 1943 and launched on July 8, 1945. Originally it was supposed to be called Valley Forge , which was instead given to another Essex-class bearer. On November 18, the ship was put into service under the command of Captain John Hoskins.

After test drives, the Princeton was stationed off Cuba , where it was part of the United States Eighth Fleet until June 1946. The carrier then moved to the United States Pacific Fleet with San Diego as its home port. In July 1946, the ship carried the body of the Philippine President Manuel Quezon, who had died two years earlier, to Manila . Then the Princeton was part of the United States Seventh Fleet, where it became the flagship of Task Force 77 in the Mariana Islands . After further operations in the Pacific and exercises off Hawaii , the carrier went into the reserve fleet on June 21, 1949 .

With the outbreak of the Korean War, the ship was reactivated on August 28, 1950 and ordered to the coast of Korea, where Princeton planes took part in air surveillance missions. A total of 248 such missions were flown from the carrier. Subsequently, from April 1951, the ship's aircraft took part in attacks on railway and car bridges. These missions dragged on until August before the Princeton returned to San Diego.

In April 1952 the carrier went back to Korea. The primary goal this time was the sinking of small ships and boats as well as the destruction of supply stores and weapon systems by the aircraft on board. In June, took Princeton on attacking the Supung dam part. Attacks on supply depots in Pyongyang and the destruction of several ammunition factories followed. In October 1952, the Princeton was reclassified as an attack vehicle before returning to San Diego in November. In February 1953, the carrier completed its third and final mission in Korea, where its aircraft gave air support for troops and again launched attacks on enemy positions. The ship remained in Korea until July 27 and returned to California in September.

In January 1954, the Princeton was reclassified again and now used for anti-submarine defense. In the following years, the carrier took part in training missions in the Eastern Pacific, the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf .

In March 1959, the Princeton was reclassified for the third and last time and henceforth listed as an amphibious assault ship. From then on, a combat unit of the Marine Expeditionary Unit was on board, and helicopters replaced the aircraft. From May 1959 to January 1960, the ship took part in joint exercises with Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton and was then transferred to Okinawa , from where it completed further training missions . From September to November 1962 the Princeton served as the flagship of Joint Task Force 8 during the nuclear tests of Operation Dominic .

From October 1964, the ship took part in operations in Vietnam. In February 1966 it replaced the USS Okinawa (LPH-3) as the flagship of the Amphibious ready group . From March to April, Princeton was part of Operation Jackstay and was then located in the Phú Lộc district in the coastal region of Bắc Trung Bộ to protect the population from troops of the Viet Cong . Other missions of the ship during the Vietnam War were Operation Nathan Hale in June 1966 and Operation Hastings in July 1966. The Princeton spent most of its time in Vietnam supplying and evacuating troops in enemy territory.

The ship was last used in April 1969 to rescue the crew from Apollo 10 in the South Pacific, which was successfully carried out on May 26th. On January 20, 1970, Princeton ended her active service after 25 years and was immediately removed from the Naval Vessel Register . In May 1971 the ship went to be scrapped.

During her service, the Princeton was awarded 8 Battle Stars for the Korean War and 4 Navy Unit Commendations for the crew. The ship's flag can be viewed in Princeton University's chapel . The Princeton also played an important role in the 1952 war film Sturmgeschwader Komet , which was also shot on board.

Web links

Commons : USS Princeton  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files