USS General George M. Randall
USS General George M. Randall (AP-115) underway in 1945
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History | |
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United States | |
Name | General George M. Randall |
Namesake | General George Morton Randall, US Army |
Ordered | 16 January 1942 |
Builder | Federal Shipbuilding & Drydock |
Laid down | 20 July 1943 |
Launched | 30 January 1944 |
Sponsored by | Mrs. Adele Lovett |
Acquired | 15 April 1944 |
Commissioned | 15 April 1944 |
Decommissioned | 2 June 1961 |
Maiden voyage | 23 May 1944 |
Stricken | 1 September 1962 |
Identification |
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Honors and awards | 12 medals and one clasp |
Fate | Sold for scrap, 8 May 1975 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | General John Pope-class transport |
Type | troopship |
Displacement |
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Length | 622 ft 7 in (189.76 m) |
Beam | 75 ft 6 in (23.01 m) |
Draft | 25 ft 6 in (7.77 m) |
Installed power | 17,000 shp |
Propulsion | 2 deLaval screw |
Speed | 20.6 knots (38.2 km/h) |
Troops | 5,142 |
Complement | 465 |
Armament |
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USS General George M. Randall (AP-115) was a
General George M. Randall was launched at the
World War II
General George M. Randall sailed from
Moving to San Diego on 22 March, she embarked passengers for Pearl Harbor and
The ship stood out under the
After hostilities
As part of the
Peacetime duties
She sailed from Pearl Harbor on 1 December 1946 for the east coast; and after undergoing peacetime alterations at Philadelphia (including the removal of her armament), stood out of that port on 2 April 1947. Sailing through the Panama Canal again and reaching San Francisco on 25 April, the transport began a series of shuttle runs between West Coast ports and the Far East, completing six voyages to Guam (for example following its 11 May 1949 departure the ship arrived 18 May 1949 at Honolulu where many passengers received liberty, and later arrived 25 May 1949 at the Port of San Francisco), two to China and Japan, and two to Hawaii before she was assigned to the Military Sea Transportation Service (now the Military Sealift Command) in October 1949.
Korean War
As an MSTS ship, General George M. Randall made scheduled runs between the West coast of the United States and the Orient until
She moored at
Return to peacetime duties
For the next three years this far-ranging ship transported men and equipment across the Pacific between West Coast ports and Japan, Okinawa, and Taiwan. In 1955 she shifted operations to the East Coast, arriving at New York on 8 April 1955 for shuttle runs from New York to Bremerhaven, ensuring the continuous flow of troops, dependents, and supplies to American forces in Europe. In first three months of 1957 she cruised the Caribbean, calling at Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Jamaica before resuming her North Atlantic transport runs out of New York on 15 April.
In 1958, the General George M. Randall was the ship that carried then-Private Elvis Presley to his first assignment in Germany; in the voyage, Elvis performed in the ship's variety show as a piano player.
Lebanon Crisis
These varied duties were highlighted by General George M. Randall's role in the 1958
Returning to her New York-Bremerhaven schedule, General George M. Randall visited Spain, Turkey, Greece, and Italy in 1959, and called at ports in Iceland and the Caribbean Islands in the next year as well.
Awards
General George M. Randall received the following awards for her service: China Service Medal (extended), American Campaign Medal, Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp), National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (1-Lebanon), Philippine Liberation Medal, United Nations Service Medal, Republic of Korea War Service Medal.
Decommission
On her last voyage, she cast off from
The ship was struck from the
References
- USS General George M. Randall (AP-115), Navsource Online.
- Cargo from Korea - Timemagazine.
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- [2][permanent dead link]
- [3]
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.