USS Swallow (AM-65)
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USS Swallow (AM-65) |
| Namesake | swallow |
| Builder | General Engineering & Dry Dock Company, Alameda, California |
| Laid down | 19 July 1941 |
| Launched | 6 May 1942 |
| Commissioned | 14 January 1943 |
| Stricken | 2 June 1945 |
| Honours and awards | 2 battle stars (World War II) |
| Fate | Sunk by kamikaze aircraft near Okinawa, 22 April 1945 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Auk-class minesweeper |
| Displacement | 890 long tons (904 t) |
| Length | 220 ft 3 in (67.13 m) |
| Beam | 32 ft 2 in (9.80 m) |
| Draft | 10 ft 9 in (3.28 m) |
| Speed | 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) |
| Complement | 100 officers and enlisted |
| Armament |
|
USS Swallow (AM-65) was an
Okinawa on 22 April 1945. She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
on 2 June 1945.
Career
Swallow (AM-65) was laid down on 19 July 1941 the General Engineering & Dry Dock Company of Alameda, California; launched on 6 May 1942; and commissioned on 14 January 1943.
Swallow completed fitting out at
convoys steaming among the various American bases in the South Pacific. During that period, she made several visits to Espiritu Santo in the New Hebrides Islands, and voyaged once each to Efate and Fiji
.
On 17 December 1943, the minesweeper set out upon her first voyage to the
Florida Island, on 3 January 1944. Until April, she escorted supply echelons to and between the Solomon Islands, first concentrating on Guadalcanal, and then, as the American forces began to climb the Solomons ladder, branched out to the other islands, notably to the Russell Islands subgroup and to Bougainville
. She also periodically made voyages back to Nouméa and Espiritu Santo. She underwent repairs there in April and returned to the Solomons on 10 May.
By late May, she was operating in the vicinity of
three days later.She remained at Eniwetok until 17 July, when the
San Diego, California, on Christmas Eve
. For a little more than a month, the minesweeper operated out of San Diego, California.
On 1 February 1945, Swallow headed back to the western Pacific. She spent ten days, 9 to 19 February, conducting exercises in
invasion of Okinawa. On the 19th, Swallow stood out of Pearl Harbor and joined the screen of a convoy bound for Eniwetok. She entered the lagoon on 2 March and headed for the Marianas the following day. Following a brief stop at Saipan on the 6th, the minesweeper continued on to Ulithi
, where she trained in preparation for the invasion of Okinawa.
On 19 March, Swallow and the rest of Task Group 52.3 sortied from Ulithi lagoon. Five days later, she arrived off
battle stars during World War II
.
On 10 July 1957, 12 years after Swallow's sinking, the
Secretary of the Navy authorized the donation of her sunken hulk to the government of the Ryukyu Islands
.
References
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.- Brown, David. Warship Losses of World War Two. Arms and Armour, London, Great Britain, 1990. ISBN 0-85368-802-8.
- Photo gallery of USS Swallow (AM-65) at NavSource Naval History
- Ships of the US Navy, 1940-1945 AM-65 USS Swallow
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in April 1945 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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