USS Robin (AMS-53)

History
United States
Name	USS YMS-311
Builder	Henry B. Nevins, Inc.; City Island, Bronx;
Laid down	7 May 1943
Launched	6 October 1943
Sponsored by	Mrs. John W. Bradbury
Completed	5 November 1943
Commissioned	6 November 1943
Decommissioned	31 July 1946
In service	31 July 1946, Naval Reserve training ship
Renamed	USS Robin (AMS-53), 1 September 1947
Namesake	the robin bird
Out of service	February 1952
Recommissioned	February 1952
Reclassified	MSC(O)-53, 7 February 1955
Decommissioned	13 December 1957
In service	13 December 1957, Naval Reserve training ship
Out of service	Summer 1961
Stricken	1 August 1961
Honors and; awards	5 battle stars, World War II
Fate	Fate unknown
General characteristics
Class and type	YMS-135 subclass of YMS-1-class minesweepers
Displacement	380 (full load)
Length	136 ft (41 m)
Beam	24 ft 6 in (7.47 m)
Draft	10 ft (3.0 m)
Propulsion	2 × 880 diesel engines; 2 shafts;
Speed	13 knots (24 km/h)
Complement	29
Armament	1 × 40 mm gun mount; 2 × 20 mm guns; 2 × depth charge tracks; 2 × depth charge projectors;

USS Robin (MSC(O)-53/AMS-53/YMS-311) was a

YMS-135 subclass built for the United States Navy during World War II

.

History

Robin was laid down as YMS-311 on 7 May 1943 by

Henry B. Nevins, Inc. of City Island, Bronx; launched 6 October 1943; sponsored by Mrs. John W. Bradbury; completed on 5 November 1943;^[1]

and commissioned on 6 November 1943.

Following shakedown in

Admiralties

.

On 11 October, YMS-311 departed

TU 79.12.1. Seven days later, she arrived at the entrance to Leyte Gulf

and began sweeping operations to clear the way for the invasion force which followed. Through the 19th, despite Japanese aerial resistance, she continued to sweep in Leyte Gulf; then, on the 20th, joined LST group Baker on the departure line off Blue Beach 2 -- Orange Beach 1 and assumed duty as control ship.

YMS-311 remained off that assault area north of

Lingayen

.

Through the month and into February, the YMS continued to support operations in the

Ie Shima

. On the morning of the 6th, a flight of 35 enemy planes attacked her formation. Three of the Vals chose her as their target, two others chose a nearby ship.

YMS-311 took the five under fire and splashed three. One penetrated the

AA defenses, hit the minesweeper on the forecastle

deck, then skidded across the bow and plunged into the water off the portside, killing one and wounding two of the ship's crew en route.

YMS-311 retired to Kerama Retto. After temporary repairs she swept that anchorage area until the 11th, then sailed for Saipan to complete her repairs.

On 26 May YMS-311 returned to

Buckner Bay

, operated in that area, with occasional runs to Kerama Retto into August, and on the 6th of that month departed the Ryukyus for the Philippines.

At the end of the month, she returned to Buckner Bay and in September moved north to the

Marianas

, whence she continued on across the Pacific Ocean to Hawaii and California.

At the end of May 1946, YMS-311, reassigned to the

U.S. Atlantic Fleet, transited the Panama Canal and proceeded to Philadelphia and New York City. Decommissioned on 31 July, she was subsequently placed in service as a Naval Reserve training ship at Tompkinsville, New York

. On 1 September 1947, YMS-311 was renamed and redesignated Robin (AMS-53).

Through the end of the decade and into the 1950s, Robin continued to serve reservists in the

Mine Division 42, operated from there until February 1954. She then moved back to the Chesapeake Bay area for overhaul and duty with the Mine Warfare School at Yorktown, Virginia. In January 1955, Charleston again became her homeport and for the next 2 years Robin resumed operations which ranged from Nova Scotia to the Caribbean

.

Redesignated MSC(O)-53 on 7 February 1955, Robin operated from Panama City, Florida, from April to October 1957. On 28 October she sailed for the west coast to return to Naval Reserve training duty.

She arrived at

13th Naval District on 13 December. She remained on that duty until placed out of service in the summer of 1961. Her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register

on 1 August 1961.

Awards and honors

YMS-311 earned five

battle stars for her World War II

service.

References

^ ^a ^b Radigan, Joseph M. (2005). "Robin (MSC[O] 53), ex-AMS-53, ex-YMS-311". NavSource Online. NavSource Naval History. Retrieved 2007-12-27.
^ Northern Hemisphere summer.

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

External links

Photo gallery of Robin at NavSource Naval History
Narrative from sailor on YMS-286 during World War II (includes a brief mention of Robin).

[navsrc-1] Radigan, Joseph M. (2005). "Robin (MSC[O] 53), ex-AMS-53, ex-YMS-311". NavSource Online. NavSource Naval History. Retrieved 2007-12-27.

[2] Northern Hemisphere summer.

[1]

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