ROCS Mei Kun
History
United States
NameLSM-478
BuilderBrown Shipbuilding Co., Houston
Laid down10 February 1945
Launched3 March 1945
Commissioned7 April 1945
Decommissioned28 May 1946
Honors and
awards		See Awards
FateTransferred to France, 1 April 1954
History
FranceFrance
NameL9016
Acquired1 April 1954
Commissioned28 June 1954
DecommissionedApril 1956
FateReturned to US, April 1956
History
TaiwanTaiwan
Name
  • Mei Kun
  • (美功)
AcquiredNovember 1956
CommissionedNovember 1956
Decommissioned1973
ReclassifiedLSM-352
Stricken1973
IdentificationPennant number: LSM-252
FateUnknown
General characteristics
Class and typeLSM-1-class landing ship medium
Displacement
  • 520 long tons (528 t) light
  • 743 long tons (755 t) landing
  • 1,095 long tons (1,113 t) full load
Length203 ft 6 in (62.03 m) o/a
Beam34 ft 6 in (10.52 m)
Draft
  • 3 ft 6 in (1.07 m) forward
  • 7 ft 8 in (2.34 m) aft
  • Fully loaded :
    • 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) forward
    • 8 ft 3 in (2.51 m) aft
Propulsion2 × Fairbanks-Morse (model 38D81/8X10, reversible with hydraulic clutch) diesels. Direct drive with 1,440 bhp (1,074 kW) each @ 720 rpm, twin screws
Speed13.2 knots (15.2 mph; 24.4 km/h)
Range4,900 nmi (9,100 km) at 12 kn (22 km/h)
Capacity5 medium or 3 heavy tanks, or 6 LVTs, or 9 DUKWs
Troops2 officers, 46 enlisted
Complement5 officers, 54 enlisted
Armament6 × 20 mm AA gun mounts
Armour10-lb. STS splinter shield to gun mounts, pilot house and conning station

USS LSM-478 was a LSM-1-class landing ship medium in the United States Navy during World War II. The ship was transferred to France as L9016 and Taiwan as ROCS Mei Kun (LSM-252).

Construction and career

LSM-478 was laid down on 10 February 1945 at Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, Texas. Launched on 3 March 1945 and commissioned on 7 April 1945.

During World War II, LSM-478 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater. She was assigned to occupation service in the Far East from 4 September to 9 November 1945.[1]

LSM-478 was decommissioned on 28 May 1946.[2]

She was loaned to the French on 1 April 1954.[3]

She was struck from the Navy Register.

The ship was commissioned into the French Navy on 28 June 1954 and renamed L9016.[3][1] She served in the First Indochina War later that year.[4]

L9016 was returned to the US in April 1956 and then transferred to Taiwan in November 1956, in which she was commissioned in November 1956, as ROCS Mei Kun (LSM-252). She was later redesignated LSM-352.

Underneath the cover of the night in January 1957, the ship escaped China through Kinmen and small waterways of Jinmen to avoid Communist Army's radar. At 8 in the evening, she lifted her anchor and left Liuluo Bay for Taiwan.[5]

The ship was put out of service in 1973 with her fate unknown.

Awards

LST-478 have earned the following awards:

Citations

  1. 1 2 "Landing Ship Medium (LSM)". www.navsource.org. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  2. ↑ "USS LSM 478 (LSM 478) of the US Navy - American Medium landing ship of the LSM class - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Further Information & Corrections: Warship Information Service". Warship International. International Naval Research Organization. 10 (3): 320–335. 1973. JSTOR 44890242.
  4. ↑ "* LSM 9016 (1954/1956) *". www.postenavalemilitaire.com (in French). Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  5. ↑ Zhenzheng, Wu (2011). 群英憶往: 陸軍官校第四軍官訓練班入伍生總隊口述歷史. Government Affairs Office of the Ministry of Defense. pp. 273–274. ISBN 978-9860273151.

Sources

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